…as Procurement Officer drags Maqutu to court
Moorosi Tsiane
A storm is brewing within the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), with fresh allegations of victimisation and bullying levelled against its Director of Elections, Mphaiphele Maqutu.
The IEC’s Procurement Officer, ’Malineo Chobokoane, has become the latest subordinate to accuse Mr Maqutu of misconduct.
She has launched an urgent Labour Court application, claiming she is being victimised for allegedly blowing the whistle on irregular procurement practices.
This comes as Mr Maqutu is already embroiled in a separate dispute with suspended IEC Public Relations Manager, Tuoe Hantši, who has also accused him of intimidation and harassment.
In court papers filed through her lawyer, Advocate Tembo Lesupi, Ms Chobokoane alleges that Mr Maqutu orchestrated her “forced and retaliatory” transfer to Qacha’s Nek, suspecting her of tipping off the police about alleged procurement irregularities—particularly surrounding the purchase of paper bags for the recent Electoral Commissions Forum of SADC Countries (ECF-SADC) conference.
The IEC and Mr Maqutu are cited as the first and second respondents respectively.
“On 9 May 2025, I received a letter from the Human Resource Manager, indicating that the Director of Elections had resolved to redeploy me to Qacha’s Nek for six months starting 10 June 2025,” she states in her affidavit.
“The reason cited was operational requirements, but I was never consulted or warned. I filed a grievance on 15 May 2025, urging the IEC to reconsider the decision. However, on 23 May 2025, I received a response dismissing my grievance. Alarmingly, I was also informed that as a result of my complaint, I was being released from my duties with immediate effect.”
Ms Chobokoane further details a March 19 incident in which Mr Maqutu allegedly summoned her to the IEC parking lot and interrogated her about the procurement process.
“He requested documentation on the procurement of the ECF-SADC paper bags. I informed him I was unaware of the details but would consult colleagues. He told me there was an ongoing police investigation and implied that the whistle-blower was from procurement. He then made a veiled threat, saying he would ‘deal decisively’ with whoever reported the matter to the police. I believed the threat was directed at me.”
She also recounts how, while on authorised leave from 14 to 22 April 2025, she received a letter demanding that she justify her absence.
“I responded on 14 April 2025, but despite this, a disciplinary hearing was scheduled. When I returned to work on 17 April 2025, I was denied access by security personnel, who said they were following instructions. I wrote to the Human Resources Manager asking whether I had been formally suspended and what procedure had been followed, but received no response. I was simply told that the disciplinary hearing would proceed on 24 April 2025.”
Ms Chobokoane claims the actions against her were all part of a vendetta motivated by the suspicion that she reported procurement violations to the police.
“My pre-hearing suspension, redeployment, and eventual dismissal all stem from the belief that I am the whistle-blower. These actions were taken without lawful cause, consultation, or due process, and were driven by malice and bad faith.”
She also claims to have been questioned by the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS), confirming there is an active criminal investigation into IEC procurement practices.
“Without disclosing details of the interrogation, I can confirm that police are investigating breaches of procurement policy. Mr Maqutu has confronted me over suspicions that I am the informant. The disciplinary actions taken against me were meant to punish me for this perceived role.”
Ms Chobokoane further challenges the legality of the disciplinary proceedings, arguing that IEC policy was violated by appointing a non-IEC employee as the hearing chairperson.
“IEC policies require that the chairperson be an IEC employee. If my legal representatives were dismissed on the basis of strict policy adherence, the same standard should apply to the composition of the panel. The process was tainted by bias and procedural flaws and should be reviewed and set aside.”
Her urgent application was scheduled to be heard on Friday at the Labour Court. However, it could not proceed as Labour Court President, Teboho Thoso, was not available.
Hantši’s case
Similarly, Mr Hantši, who was suspended on 8 May 2025, has accused Mr Maqutu of persistent harassment, bullying, and unfair labour practices.
In his petition filed with the Directorate on Dispute Prevention and Resolution (DDPR) on 12 May 2025, Mr Hantši paints a picture of long-standing hostility with his boss.
“The Director of IEC has on many occasions intimidated, coerced, bullied, and harassed me.
“In November 2022, he warned me not to question him, claiming he had money and influence. He told me he did not care, since his former employer, Lesotho Electricity Company, had already paid him well. He said even if he left the IEC, he was financially secure. He vowed that I and my family would suffer before the courts could help me. I did suffer, having been dismissed in August 2023 before being reinstated in April 2024 through a court order,” Mr Hantši claims.
He also accuses Mr Maqutu of pressuring him to identify a whistle-blower involved in the IEC procurement investigation.
“On 3 April 2025, he told me he suspected I had reported him to the police over paper-bag procurement. He later claimed it was a procurement officer, and demanded that I investigate and report that person to him. I refused, saying it would be unlawful to expose a whistle-blower.”
On 6 May 2025, Mr Hantši says he was summoned to a meeting where he was publicly accused of colluding with the whistle-blower and endangering Mr Maqutu’s life.
“He accused me of facilitating police access to IEC premises and blamed me for his secretary being held for questioning. He also accused me of endangering him by asking a security officer if he had arrived at work. He said he would determine if I had threatened him and would fire me if he deemed it so.”
Mr Hantši says he was suspended two days later, pending investigations into alleged threats to Mr Maqutu’s personal safety.
“The Director also habitually holds press conferences to inform the media that he has suspended me whereas for other employees he never holds such press conferences.
“This is moreso when he claims in the suspension letter that he is a complainant and yet he conducts press releases about the suspension and not the Commission – IEC itself.
“It is due to one or more (several) of the above cited incidents that I claim unfair labour practice committed by the employer against me as a worker and I have not been afforded any protection from these acts of threats to dismiss me, threats of intimation to make me and my family suffer as a result of dismissal, coercion to investigate other employee, bullying and harassment made to be and also in front of colleagues and acts of tyranny. This has resulted in me suffering psychological harm as well.”
Mr Maqutu has not yet submitted his answering papers.