Bongiwe Zihlangu
MASERU — The All Basotho Convention (ABC) leader, Thomas Thabane, on Friday snubbed the youth wing’s special conference in Mafeteng saying it was an illegal gathering.
The ABC youth league went ahead with their special annual conference without approval from the party’s national executive.
The national executive had ordered the youth league to postpone the conference because it had scheduled its own conference on the same weekend.
The youth league however refused to budge, arguing that the party’s constitution stipulated that they should have their conference in August.
But their conference suffered a major setback after Thabane, whom they had invited as the guest of honour, snubbed the event.
Thabane told the Sunday Express that it would have been wrong to attend a conference that had not been approved by the party leadership.
“I’m not just a loose nut but part of a structure that is the national executive committee. I am answerable to that committee,” Thabane said.
“All conferences are organised by the executive committee. The youth know it was wrong for them to go ahead with their conference.”
“The youth knew of plans by the executive committee to hold a special conference tonight (Sunday) to discuss our position as the ABC regarding local government elections.”
Thabane however said he was not shocked that the youth league had defied the executive committee because “youth these days tend to disrespect their elders”.
“It’s not only the ABC but all political parties dealing with issues of insubordination from the youth”.
“The committee will have to deal with this matter in a proper manner.”
On Friday the party’s publicity secretary, Thabo Thakalekoala, told this paper that the youth league will face a disciplinary hearing if they proceeded with the conference.
“They are loose cannons,” Thakalekoala said.
“They insist on doing what they like. Disciplinary measures will be taken against them. The conference will probably be declared null and void.”
Jane Mohoalohoalo, the youth league’s spokesperson, said the special conference was attended by only 16 of the party’s 80 constituencies.
He said youth president Libe Moremoholo had officially opened the conference and told the league members that he was upset that Thabane had not attended the event.
“But we knew they would not come. We are also aware that we will be appearing before a disciplinary committee,” Mohoalohoalo said.
Meanwhile, the secretary-general of the youth league, Thebe Makoatle, yesterday insisted that the youth had not defied the executive committee because he did not receive any “letter stating that we should not continue with our conference”.
“Normally what we do is that the ABC secretary general (Sam Rapapa) and I give letters directly to each other. No such letter has reached me,” Makoatle said.
Makoatle added that this was not the first time that they were caught up in a row with the leadership over their annual conference.
He said in August last year the executive committee forced the youth league to postpone its conference “because they wanted to have theirs”.
“We agreed to postpone but they never had theirs then. Instead, they only called that conference in October. This meant we had our annual conference only in November,” Makoatle said.
“It was at that November conference that the ABC youth league made the resolution to hold its annual conference every August as stipulated by the constitution.”
Asked what the league would do if the executive committee did not endorse all the conference’s resolutions Makoatle said, “We will seek recourse from within the ABC, through our conferences”.
On Thakalekoala calling them “loose cannons”, Makoatle said if they were considered as such “it means members of this party whom we serve are also loose cannons”.
“We have a public that we serve and we listen to what people need. If we are loose cannons, so are those people that we work for.