THE unfolding revelations about the Lesotho Electricity Company (LEC)’s internal corruption are far more than just another headline-grabbing scandal but a wake-up call about the rot undermining our public institutions.
As the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) digs deeper, what emerges is not just incompetence but a dangerous blend of neglect, fraud, and a sense of impunity that ultimately threatens every household in Lesotho.
Let’s call this what it is: The LEC has haemorrhaged at least M26.8 million to outright theft, with employees and clients colluding to siphon off electricity units and cash. This is not a “clerical error” or a “system failure” but a criminal enterprise operating within a state utility.
Acting Head of Customer Experience, Ts’epo Mololo, admits the initial loss was even higher — M33 million — yet only a fraction has been recovered. The recovery of M7.8 million is a mere fraction of what has been lost.
For a country like ours, with so many citizens struggling to make ends meet, these are not just figures on paper. This is money stolen from the public, from schools, hospitals, and the very infrastructure that should serve us all.
And the corruption at LEC does not stop at the sales counter. Procurement, too, is compromised.
The PAC heard on Wednesday how LEC spent M1.2 million on power cables from a company in South Africa — HDM Catering and Projects — that may not even exist.
Then the following day, on Thursday, during a PAC session with the LEC, parliamentary portfolio committees’ Chair of Chairs, Mokhothu Makhalanyane, said his preliminary investigations into the bizarre transaction had revealed that HDM Catering and Projects does not exist. Yes, there may be no such entity after all. Mr Makhalanyane promised to provide more details once he has concluded his probe.
Apparently, acting LEC Managing Director, Nathaniel Maphathe, signed off on the deal, ignoring objections from suspended Head of Finance, ’Makabelo Matsoso.
PAC was stunned by the revelation, rightfully so. Are we really at a point where public funds can disappear with zero accountability? What confidence can we have in a system where public funds can disappear into thin air with the stroke of a pen?
As PAC chairperson ’Machabana Lemphane-Letsie noted, the level of impunity is astounding. LEC’s mismanagement does not just mean missing money; it directly causes electricity prices to rise, pushing more Basotho into hardship.
This culture of impunity has very grave consequences. Every embezzled loti translates into higher electricity tariffs, more government bailouts, and heavier burdens for ordinary Basotho — people already buckling under economic hardship.
Then there’s the M5 million software system meant to fix some of LEC’s systemic issues. Predictably, it does not work, and the company that sold it has vanished. Was this just another front for fraud? The PAC is asking the right questions, but will anyone face consequences?
As LEC Board chairperson, Thabo Khasipe Khasipe, put it bluntly during one of the PAC sittings: “Accountability is paramount.”
However, the phrase is almost laughable in the face of such dysfunction.
For too long, LEC’s leadership has hidden behind bureaucracy and excuses. The culture of mismanagement has flourished because government authorities allowed it. Even now, the focus seems to be on damage control and blame-shifting rather than meaningful reform.
Let’s be honest: these aren’t isolated incidents, and this isn’t just about LEC. It’s about a system that allows the same scandals to play out in parastatal after parastatal while ordinary people suffer. We need to demand that every person involved in these schemes is held to account, and that the stolen funds are returned to the public purse.
As shocking testimonies unfold before the PAC, it’s clear the rot runs deep: fraud, botched procurement, and almost non-existent oversight have left our national utility — and by extension, our entire country — on the brink.
The PAC’s outrage is justified, but the real tragedy is that this kind of mismanagement has become normalised. Accountability is not just a catchy slogan — it’s the only thing standing between public service and public ruin. Yet time and again, LEC’s leadership has failed to enforce it.
We need to stop treating these revelations as unfortunate blips and start recognising them as symptoms of systemic decay. If the government and law enforcement won’t act decisively, the cycle will only repeat itself — more millions will be lost, more hardship for the people, more erosion of trust trust.
As Lesotho faces high unemployment and economic uncertainty, we cannot afford to treat this as business as usual. The government and law enforcement must act decisively — not just with words, but with real action to overhaul the way our public companies are run.
The LEC scandal should be a turning point—a moment when we finally say enough is enough. If Lesotho is ever to move forward, we need transparency, we need integrity, and above all, we need leadership willing to put the interests of Basotho first. Only then will we see a transformed LEC and a government that truly serves its people.
The stakes are too high for half-measures. Every cent stolen must be reclaimed, and every perpetrator — no matter how powerful — must face justice. Only then can we hope to rebuild the LEC into an institution that serves, rather than exploits the nation. If we demand anything less, we are complicit in our own decline.