Staff Reporters

THE National Reforms Authority (NRA) has filed an urgent High Court application for the nullification of the recent cabinet decision to dissolve the body.

Cabinet last week resolved to dissolve the NRA, a body tasked with spearheading the implementation of the constitutional, security sector, media, judicial and governance reforms recommended by SADC in 2016.

Its mandate was initially supposed to expire last year but it was extended because of the slow pace of the reforms process.

Now that it had covered some ground which had resulted in Law and Justice Minister Lekhetho Rakuoane recently tabling in parliament an omnibus bill containing the proposed constitutional amendments, cabinet resolved to dissolve the NRA.

However, the decision has not gone down well with the NRA. The authority has since approached the High Court to “review and set aside as invalid, irrational and unreasonable cabinet’s decision to refuse to extend the duration of the reforms authority”.

The NRA wants its duration and existence to be extended until the last reform bill is assented to by His Majesty King Letsie III or alternatively “at the end of seven days after the last legal instrument is tabled by parliament”.

The NRA also wants the cabinet to be directed to ensure that activities and operations of the NRA are financed from the Consolidated Fund or “from such other sources of funds as shall be determined by parliament”.

In the interim, the NRA wants the court to interdict the government from repossessing any of the vehicles that were allocated to its secretariat.

Minister Rakuoane and the Attorney General are the first and second respondents respectively in the application.