MASERU – A new law forcing all workers to be vaccinated for Covid-19 is facing a legal challenge, thepost can reveal.
The government has announced that all employees, whether private or public, will not be allowed to work unless they have been vaccinated.
It also said unvaccinated people will not be allowed to seek medical help at all health centres.

The controversial decisions were announced by Prime Minister Moeketsi Majoro during his Covid-10 update speech on Monday.
He said these measures are meant to curb the spread of the virus whose Omicron variant is marauding the country and threatening to overwhelm the country’s already fragile health system.
A copy of a government gazette dated December 31 and seen by thepost confirms the same.

But as the government prepares to enforce the regulations, some individuals are rolling up their sleeves for a legal fight.
At the centre of their challenge is the constitutionality of the regulations and that they violate civil liberties.
The individuals who are mostly from the private sector will argue that the regulations violate their right to life, association, privacy, movement and work.

Also central to their challenge is that the regulations interfere with their right to choice on health matters.
Others are basing their legal challenge on religious freedom.
The papers are being finalised and likely to be filed on Monday.
Advocate Letuka Molati has confirmed that he has received instructions to file the case against the government.

“We are going to challenge it from a constitutional and regularity angle,” Advocate Molati said, adding that most of the papers are almost ready.
“The issue here is that you cannot force everyone to vaccinate.”
He said although most of the people in the case are from the private sector, government employees are also likely to join.

“We are just waiting for confirmation of the gazette because there have been various versions and officials from the government printers seem to be indicating that there is no official gazette as yet,” he said.
By last night there was still confusion over the much-awaited gazette.
Officials from the Government Printers said they were not selling copies of gazette number 177, dated December 31, which was being shared on social media.

An official who refused to be named said they only printed a few copies which were sent back to parliament for editing.
“We still have not received the final version to print so we are also confused about the version we are seeing on social media,” said the official.
“The issue is that we don’t have that kind of gazette for sale.”
However, Health Minister Semano Sekatle told thepost that the gazette was published last Friday.

Sekatle said the regulations had to be “softened after concerns from the private sector, NGOs and other stakeholders”.
The minister was referring to the government’s last minute climb-down on its initial decision to block unvaccinated people from getting all government services.

“What we are saying is that those who are not vaccinated can enjoy all other government services apart from health services. The idea is to protect health workers against the virus,” he said.
“I specifically insisted on that element to protect our health personnel and the system. We are not going to back down on that one.”
“We are also clear that we will not compromise on the requirement that every employee in Lesotho should be vaccinated.”

The minister said the regulations were in line with the constitution.
He referred to section 27 (1) (c) which says “Lesotho shall adopt policies aimed at ensuring the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health for its citizens, including policies designed to provide for the prevention, treatment and control of epidemic, endemic, occupational and other diseases”.

There is also section 30 (b) which says “Lesotho shall adopt policies aimed at securing just and favourable conditions of work and in particular policies directed to achieving safe and healthy working conditions”.
On Monday Prime Minister Majoro, who has just recovered from a second bout of Covid-19, said infections were rising.
“This past week of Christmas we found 260 positive cases,” he said, adding that the infection rate has gone up from 0.9 percent to 9 percent.
“This means in every test conducted, 9 people out of 10 are positive,” he said.

He said what has happened this year resembles what happened last year at the same time even though hospital admissions are lower.
He said he was worried that the number of people being vaccinated has significantly dropped despite the government’s public awareness campaign.
So far 800 000 Basotho have been vaccinated against a target of 1.6 million.
Just over 2, 500 children have been vaccinated and the target is 240 000.
The Prime Minister said people in the highlands are still hesitant to get vaccinated.

“I have ordered the health ministry to ensure that we reach those places,” Majoro said.

Staff Reporter