Staff Reporter
MASERU — The High Court has ordered the National University of Lesotho (NUL) council to stop running the university.
The interim order issued on Friday afternoon came minutes after the Molotsi Monyamane-led council had just cancelled its meeting after failing to form a quorum.
The emergency meeting was supposed to discuss the university’s budget for the 2013/2014 financial year.
Dr Sepiriti Tlali, a lecturer who is also a member of the council, had approached the court to block the meeting.
The application was supported by four other council members.
The respondents were NUL, Monyamane, registrar Tumelo Tsikoane, and the 11th council.
Although it came after the meeting it was supposed to block had already been cancelled the order still has implications on the operations of the 11th council whose legitimacy has been the subject of recent fights at the university.
In his court application Tlali had argued that the council had no right to meet because its term and that of its chairman, Monyamane, expired last December.
Monyamane said he received the order minutes after he had cancelled the meeting at the Lesotho College of Education.
The interim order means that the council cannot meet until Tlali’s application is finalised.
The order said Monyamane’s council should not meet on Friday “or on any date until a new council shall have been inaugurated and installed in accordance with the governing law” of NUL.
It also bars Monyamane from convening or chairing council meetings.
The order means that until the case has been finalised Monyamane’s council cannot hold meetings to discuss university matters.
It is likely that the university will not have a budget until a new council has been appointed.
Until then the university will not be able to pay employees and suppliers.
Meanwhile the government is racing against time to appoint a new council.
The government has to appoint the council by July 19.
That date was agreed upon by the legal teams of Kananelo Mosito and the government.
This was after Mosito who is the dean of the law faculty at NUL had sued the government to force it to appoint a new council.
After negotiations the parties agreed that the council should be appointed no later than July 19.
Although it was an out-of-court settlement, the agreement was endorsed by a court with which the government has to comply.
Yesterday Education Minister ’Makabelo Mosothoane said the new council will be appointed soon. She had received names of people nominated for the council and had “forwarded them to the authorities”.
“All I can say is that the university will have a new council soon,” Mosothoane said.
Fears that the university might have to close if the budget is not approved soon are overdone, she said.