News

Mokhothu’s famo gangs dilemma

Published

3 years ago

May 3, 2022

MASERU – FAMO gangs are known for brutal killings. They have killed their opponents and even their families.
They can be hired as hitmen. Their music is laden with explicit lyrics that insult and eulogise violence.

It is therefore logical for politicians to greet them with a ten-foot pole.
They are the kind of people whose support you might crave but you should never openly associate with.

They are a toxic company that brings serious reputational damage to anyone who either embraces or tolerates them.
Yet, given their numbers, they bring votes.

All it takes is the leader’s instruction on which political party to vote for and they will all troop to the polling stations.
So how does a politician keep a healthy distance from them without alienating them?

The Democratic Congress (DC) leader and Deputy Prime Minister Mathibeli Mokhothu must have agonised over that dilemma.
His solution is a novel one.

He is embracing the gangs but making it clear that only those who are good deserve to be in his arms.
That is a tricky distinction to make for organisations as notorious as Terene.

But Mokhothu is risking it all by playing a delicate balancing act.
He is appealing to Terene’s desire to be accepted as a peaceful organisation only tainted by rogue elements it does not control.

That is the tone Mokhothu used when he spoke at the funeral of Terene leader Ntei Tšehlana on Saturday in Qhoalinyane, Qacha’s Nek.
Mokhothu said when he sees famo gangsters he does not associate them with any crime. Instead, he said, he sees smart men and women in gang regalia.

He said most of Terene members “are not monsters or criminals”.

“When I see you, I see men and women who are dressed well and who love what they do,” Mokhothu said.

“The issue of your blankets’ colours should not be seen as trouble,” he said, after condemning the police for instructing Terene members who would attend Tšehlana’s funeral to not wear their gang insignia.

He added that Seakhi members’ lives too should not be made difficult because of the colours of their blankets.
Seakhi is Terene’s rival for years. They have fought countless bloody gang wars.

“What can make them criminals is when individuals do not part ways with crime not the colour of blankets they wear,” he said.

“Wearing the yellow Terene and Seakhi members’ blankets is not a crime,” he said.

It has become an unwritten law for the police to instruct famo gang members to attend funerals of their comrades without wearing their symbols, citing that the sight of the regalia itself triggers violence.

Since the mid-1990s there have been incidents of deadly gun battles at funerals both in Lesotho and South Africa.
Lately, the fights would either between the Terene and Seakhi gangs or factional wars within the gangs themselves.

The famo gang violence can be traced to the mid-90s when mourners were often sprayed with bullets in Lesotho as well as in South Africa.
The police, especially in Mafeteng district where much of the gangsters come from, have become wary of the wars and started denying them their rights to wear their gang symbols when attending funerals.

The genesis of the fights can be traced to the battle for control of illegal gold mines in South Africa. Those fights over turf often spill over into Lesotho where entire families have been wiped out.
But Mokhothu says the police should focus on what the gangs do and not how they dress.

“The security institutions should chase people because of what they did and not because of their affiliations,” Mokhothu said.

Mokhothu’s words appear to indicate a change of tact in the way the DC relates with famo gangs.
His predecessor, former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, was more circumspect about his relations with the gangs.

One never knew whether he dined with them or not.
That Mokhothu, his protégé, is singing a different tune is a sign that times have changed.

It is a political game.
But Mokhothu’s carefully picked words at the funeral leave him room for plausible deniability.

If things get out of hand, as they usually do, he can say it is the bad apples in the groups.
He would say he never embraced gangsters that kill and maim.

In fact, he could say he is working with them to help them reform.
At the funeral, Mokhothu urged the gangs to hanker for peace “because the DC is a peaceful party”.

He promised to help famo gangs if the DC wins the October election.

“We will stand with you after taking the government,” he said.

“We have already hired some of you to help raise their families.”

Tšehlana, who was being buried on Saturday, had gotten himself a job at the Ministry of Home Affairs which is notorious for dishing out jobs to party functionaries.
Mokhothu pledged to work with gang leaders to find peace and help them earn a proper living.

“These people who are killing you are only left with four months … they will sleep outside (teleha),” he said.

He said Basotho will vote wisely and his government will reform the police service to “a level where they will be able to differentiate between killers and people who just form groups”.

“We will do everything in our power to fight this dinosaur that is killing you.”

He told the Terene gang that they “dress well and should do well”.
He blamed the killings on some people who are in the government saying they incite the violence, calling on the National Security Service (NSS) to “find men and women in uniform who take part in these acts”.

He said they always pay from their pockets to repatriate corpses of gangsters from Gauteng to Lesotho.
He urged the security institutions to work harder to combat the gang killings.

“The issue of corpses of Terene members that are repatriated home means the security institutions must work harder to end them,” he said.

He said the killings give him sleepless nights.

“I want to see them building beautiful houses like Tšehlana’s.”

He said he wants to see the gangs walking freely in their own country, “without being chased away”.
He said the police “must protect every Mosotho, rich or poor, regardless of their status”.

That’s Mokhothu, the politician, avoiding rocking the boat during election time.
Anyone who can deliver votes should be accommodated.

Nkheli Liphoto

News

Knives out for Molelle

Published

2 days ago

January 13, 2025

The Post

MASERU

KNORX Molelle’s appointment as the Director General of the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences (DCEO) in February 2023 could have been illegal.

The Law Society of Lesotho has told Prime Minister Sam Matekane that Molelle was appointed without being admitted as a legal practitioner in Lesotho, as required by law.

The society claims the information came from a whistleblower on January 2 and was corroborated by its roll of legal practitioners in Lesotho.

The society says the appointment violates section 4 of the Prevention of Corruption and Economic Offences Act 1999 which states that a person shall not be appointed as the DCEO director general unless they have been admitted as a legal practitioner in terms of the Legal Practitioners Act.

In the letter, Advocate Ithabeleng Phamotse, the society’s secretary, tells Matekane that this requirement “is not a mere procedural formality but a substantive qualification essential to the lawful appointment of the Director General”.

“The absence of such qualification fatally impairs the appointment ab initio, rendering it null and void from the outset,” Advocate Phamotse says in the letter written on Tuesday.

The society argues that if left unaddressed the illegality undermines the credibility, effectiveness and legality of the DCEO’s operations and exposes the kingdom to serious risks, including challenges to the lawfulness of decisions and actions made by Molelle.

“Should it be confirmed that the appointment was made in contravention of the mandatory legal requirements,” Advocate Phamotse said, “we respectfully urge you to take immediate corrective action to rectify this glaring irregularity”.

Advocate Phamotse tells the prime minister that if the appointment is not corrected, the society would be “left with no alternative but to institute legal proceedings to protect the interests of justice and uphold the rule of law in Lesotho”.

“We trust that you will accord this matter your highest priority and act decisively to avert further damage to the integrity of our governance structures.”

The Prime Minister’s spokesman, Thapelo Mabote, said they received the letter but Matekane had not yet read it yesterday.

Matekane is on leave and is expected back in the office on January 14.

Questions over the validity of his appointment come as Molelle is being haunted by the damaging audio clips that were leaked last week.

The clips were clandestinely recorded by Basotho National Party leader, Machesetsa Mofomobe.

In some of the clips, Molelle appears to be describing Matekane and his deputy Justice Nthomeng Majara as idiots. He also appears to be calling Law Minister Richard Ramoeletsi a devil.

In other clips, he seems to be discussing cases. thepost has not independently verified the authenticity of the audio clips.

Staff Reporter

News

Massive salary hike for chiefs

Published

2 days ago

January 13, 2025

The Post

MASERU

THE government has increased the salaries for traditional leaders by a massive 88.5 percent.

This means that a village chief not appointed by a gazette will now earn M3 001 a month, up from the previous salary of M1 592. That means village chiefs will now earn an extra M1 409 per month.

A village chief, or headman, appointed by a gazette has moved from M1 966 to M3 567 per month.

Above a village chief is one with jurisdiction over a small cluster of villages, a category three chief, who now moves from M3 768 to M5 181 per month.

A category four chief, known as ward chief, has moved from M4 455 per month to M7 993.

The category five chief, who reports directly to a principal chief, will now earn M10 674, up from M9 939 per month.

There is no increment for principal chiefs.

The government says the budget for chiefs’ salaries has moved from M129.4 million to M208.3 million annually.

The hike follows a series of discussions between the Lesotho Workers Association, representing the chiefs, and the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftainship.

The revised salaries will be implemented with effect from April 1, 2025.

According to the settlement agreement, a discussion about raising the lowest salary of M6 000 for the lowest-ranking chiefs will be revisited in October 2025.

Chiefs who spoke to thepost have expressed satisfaction with the hike, saying it will significantly improve their lives.

Chief Mopeli Matsoso of Ha-Tikoe in Maseru said his previous salary of M1 500 per month would now be doubled, which would improve his life and help provide smoother services to the community.

He stressed that they used to close the offices while going out looking for jobs to compensate for their little salaries.

“Now the people will get smoother services,” Chief Matsoso said.

“The offices will forever be open,” he said.

Chief Matsoso said the salary hike will also serve as a motivation for other chiefs.

Chief Tumo Majara of Liboping, Mokhethoaneng, also expressed his gratitude.

Chief Majara acknowledge the positive impact the salary review would have, especially as a new officeholder.

“I guess we are all happy, that review will help a lot,” he said.

The Principal Chief of Thaba-Bosiu, Khoabane Theko, said the salary increase of chief is a welcome move by the government.

“I’m yet to study how the new salary structure looks like. But I welcome it as a good move by the government,”Chief Theko said.

Nkheli Liphoto

News

Maqelepo says suspension deeply flawed

Published

2 days ago

January 13, 2025

The Post

MASERU

Motlatsi Maqelepo, the embattled Basotho Action Party (BAP) deputy leader and Tello Kibane, who was the party chairman, have rejected their suspension from the party arguing it was legally flawed.

The BAP’s central executive committee on Tuesday suspended Maqelepo for seven years and Kibane for five years. The suspensions became effective on the same day.

The party’s disciplinary committee which met last Wednesday had recommended an expulsion for the two but that decision was rejected with the committee pushing for a lengthy suspension.

Maqelepo’s suspension will end on January 7, 2032 while Kibane’s will run until January 7, 2030.

Their suspension letters from the BAP deputy secretary general Victoria Qheku, say they should not participate in any of the party’s activities.

“In effect, you are relieved of your responsibility as a CEC member and BAP deputy leader,” Maqelepo was told in the letter.

“You were found guilty by default on all charges and the committee recommended your immediate dismissal from the party,” the letter reads.

On Kibane, the verdict states that the committee decided to mitigate the recommended sanction by reducing his suspension to five years.

“In the gravity of the charges, the suspension affects your membership in the BAP parliamentary caucus from which you are removed as a chairman.”

They were suspended in absentia after they refused to attend the disciplinary hearing, which they said was illegal.

In response to the suspension, Maqelepo wrote a letter addressing the BAP members in general, defying the committee’s decision to suspend them.

He has called for a special conference, appealing to party constituencies to push for it, citing the ongoing internal fight that includes the leadership’s decision to withdraw the BAP from the coalition government.

Maqelepo also said the central executive committee is illegally in a campaign to dissolve committees in the constituencies and replace them with stooges.

He reminded the members that there is a court case pending in the High Court seeking an interdiction to charge them in the party’s structures without approval of the special conference that he is calling.

He said the party leadership should have awaited the outcome of the case before proceeding with any disciplinary action.

“The party that is led by a professor of law continues to do dismissals despite the issue being taken to the courts,” Maqelepo said.

The party leader, Professor Nqosa Mahao, is a distinguished professor of law.

Maqelepo said they would write the central executive committee rejecting its decision to suspend them, saying they will continue taking part in party activities.

He said their fate in the party is in the hands of the special conference.

He appealed to all the party constituencies to continue writing letters demanding the special conference.

Both Maqelepo and Kibane received letters on November 28 last year inviting them to show cause why they should not be suspended pending their hearing.

They both responded on the following day refusing to attend.

Maqelepo, Kibane, Hilda Van Rooyen, and ’Mamoipone Senauoane are accused of supporting a move to remove Professor Mahao from his ministerial position last year.

They were part of the BAP members who asked Prime Minister Sam Matekane to fire Professor Mahao, who at the same time was pushing for the reshuffling of Tankiso Phapano, the principal secretary for the Ministry of Energy.

When Matekane ignored Professor Mahao’s demands, the latter withdrew the BAP from the coalition government much to the fierce resistance of the party’s four MPs.

Maqelepo started touting members from constituencies to call for a special conference to reverse Professor Mahao and the central executive committee’s decision.

The central executive committee issued a circular stopping Maqelepo’s rallies but he continued, with the support of the other MPs.

In the BAP caucus of six MPs, it is only Professor Mahao and ’Manyaneso Taole who are supporting the withdrawal from the government.

Nkheli Liphoto