Bongiwe Zihlangu MASERU — The Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) says it is disgusted by former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili’s continued onslaught on its leader Mothetjoa Metsing. The LCD national executive told a press conference on Monday it was worried that after he jumped ship to form the Democratic Congress (DC) Mosisili is still “persecuting” Metsing at his post-election rallies.
This, said the executive committee, is despite that Metsing has maintained his “dignity and continued to respect” Mosisili after the acrimonious split in February. The LCD had called the press conference to refute allegations Mosisili made at his party’s July 1 rally in the Mabote constituency. Mosisili told supporters that his party had approached the LCD for a coalition deal after the May 26 election but the talks had collapsed because Metsing wanted to be the prime minister even though his party had less seats.
The former prime minister is on a nationwide tour to “console” his supporters and explain why the DC is not in government after winning the majority of seats in the election. The DC got 48 seats, 13 short of the 61 required to form a government. That left the LCD, the All Basotho Convention and the Basotho National Party to form a coalition government under the ABC’s Tom Thabane. LCD deputy leader Motloheloa
Phooko told journalists that Mosisili had continued to persecute Metsing by making false claims. “It is a blatant lie that Metsing wanted to become prime minister in the event that the two parties formed a coalition. Ntate Mosisili seems to derive pleasure from victimising Metsing,” Phooko said. “But then again, we are familiar with the pain and humiliation that Ntate Metsing, for a long time, went through in Ntate Mosisili’s hands until he (Mosisili) left to form the DC.” Phooko said the LCD was shocked by the fact that Mosisili continued in his pursuit to harass Metsing “by telling blatant lies about him”.
“There’s no morsel of truth in Mosisili’s claims that Metsing wanted to be prime minister of the proposed coalition. Mosisili himself hijacked the LCD government and ruled with a mere 45 seats,” Phooko said.
LCD secretary-general, Keketso Rantšo, said Mosisili was lying and inciting violence by claiming that the DC had won the May 26 election.
“We take it that Mosisili is inciting violence by saying that and we have engaged legal practitioners to interpret his statements,” Rantšo said. “As someone who was a prime minister for a good 14 years, he understands Lesotho’s constitution. We want to form a clear picture of what he’s saying because it has the potential to trigger protests by DC supporters.” Rantšo added that the factionalism that had led to the split in the LCD and gave birth to the DC was actually caused “by DC leaders who are deceitful people”. “We had to part (ways) because they knew nothing about the truth. A good example is that of a lie concocted by the DC just days before elections, that Metsing was seen leaving Mosisili’s place in the early hours of one morning.” Phooko also said it was important to counter Mosisili’s “lies” about the coalition government hijacking the
people’s vote because “people listen to him”. “When Mosisili speaks, do not take him lightly especially when he plans to tour the country spreading his gospel because a lot of people pay attention,” Phooko said.
“We need to fiercely counter what he says, more so because Lesotho is popular for post-election conflict. When someone who was PM starts talking like that we need to be alert.” Treasurer Lebohang Ntšinyi and elders’ committee chairman Mpho Malie also attended the press conference.