MORE than 10 people were injured when Democratic Congress (DC) and opposition supporters clashed at a DC rally in the Thetsane Industrial Area on Thursday afternoon.
To say we are shocked by this event would be an understatement.
We are dismayed at such barbaric acts.
Violence of any nature should be condemned.
If we allow what happened on Thursday to go unpunished we must brace ourselves for more violence, if not anarchy, in the next five weeks leading to the May 26 election. We will be setting ourselves up for a chaotic post-election period.
A violent campaign is a precursor to a disputed election. A disputed election leads to a violent and anarchical post-election period. We would not be surprised when after May 26 some parties argue that the election was not free and fair because there were intimidation and violence.
We should not be shocked when we have a repeat of the 1998 fiasco which left dozens killed and reduced Maseru to rubble.
We are yet to recover what we lost in those weeks of madness. The wounds inflicted on many of us during that dark chapter in our history are yet to heal.
What happened on Thursday suggests there are people in our midst who either have short memories or are deliberately trying to shove this country down a precipice again.
We can only speculate on their motives but we should never tire in our resolve to stop them in their tracks before they create another mess in this country.
Yet in doing so we must never resort to violence for that can only make things worse. The law must take its course.
Lesotho has legal and credible mechanisms to deal with such unruly characters. The police must deal strongly with political violence without fear or favour. The Independent Electoral Commission has a duty to ensure that political leaders abide by the electoral laws and code of conduct.
We must also state that we are disappointed with the way the DC leader, Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili, reacted to the unfortunate events of Thursday.
“We should make sure that we stop these people (opposition supporters) and make them respect our rallies on our own if the law enforcement agencies are failing to do their job as they are supposed to,” said an angry Mosisili in the aftermath of the clashes.
He had every right to be angry but we think he was totally out of line when he encouraged his supporters to fight back.
Now is not the time for political leaders, especially the prime minister and a leader of a ruling party, to stoke emotions and fan violence.
We understand that Mosisili and his supporters have come to believe that they are victims of the opposition’s dirty campaign tactics.
Recent events give credence to this belief.
A few weeks ago Mosisili was heckled by opposition supporters while addressing a DC rally in Maputsoe.
It’s either the opposition parties have failed to control their supporters or they are part of these unacceptable campaign tactics. Still that does not justify Mosisili’s calls on DC supporters to retaliate.
A country that condones an-eye-for-an-eye kind of justice has no future. Mosisili must start preaching peace and encouraging the police to do their job.
The prime minister must be careful what he wishes for: If DC supporters fight back there will be lawlessness in this country.
We saw from Zimbabwe what happens when leaders give a subtle approval for their supporters to fight fire with fire.
There is a danger that following Mosisili’s statements on Thursday some DC supporters might take the law into their own hands.
When that happens the government might not be able to control the situation.
The people of this country will be the biggest losers.
They deserve better.
Yes, people were injured on Thursday and Mosisili was heckled at his rally in Maputsoe.
But that does not mean the DC should stoop to the lowly levels of its aggressors.
Instead Mosisili needs to calm his supporters and insist on running a campaign based on real issues and not violence.
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