Politicians From Lesotho

"Adequate funding is crucial for the National Assembly to perform its functions, including research, oversight, and legislative work. Currently, insufficient funding limits these activities."

"The National Assembly also needs skilled personnel — researchers, advisors, and administrative staff — to support its work. There is a capacity gap. Modern infrastructure, such as IT systems and facilities, can improve efficiency."

"A well-defined institutional framework, including clear rules and procedures, ensures accountability, transparency, and effective decision-making."

"Parliament must have the authority to approve, reject, or amend budget bills. Allocating 3% of the budget could enhance oversight capacity, enabling thorough investigations and holding the executive accountable. Denying this amendment limits Parliament’s ability to scrutinise government activities, potentially leading to unchecked corruption and abuse of power."

"In a democracy, Parliament is the people’s watchdog, not the ruling party’s shield. When the government blocks investigative reports or critical motions, it kills accountability. This practice erodes checks and balances, breeds impunity, and strips citizens of faith in democratic institutions. It is not democracy at work but the death of accountability by numbers."

"Yes — politics, when practiced with integrity and vision, can indeed transform a country. Politics shapes policies, allocates resources, sets national priorities, and determines whether institutions serve the people or enslave them."

"But politics is only as good as those who practice it. Reduced to patronage, corruption, and party-line arrogance, it drags a nation down; but when elevated to service, accountability, and nation-building, it becomes the engine of progress. Politics is not the problem — bad politics is."

"I aspire to restore politics to its rightful place as a tool of nation-building, not self-enrichment. My journey as a politician is about breaking the culture of party-line arrogance and replacing it with service, accountability, and vision."

"I want to see a Lesotho where Parliament is once again the people’s House, where public debate is a national instrument, and oversight is embraced as the backbone of democracy."

"In short, my mission is to move this country from survival politics to purposeful politics — politics that delivers jobs, justice, and dignity."

"It is clear that you did not come here prepared. You should return with a clear and detailed report that is without inaccuracies and omissions."

"It is wrong that the agriculture ministry which governs a greater part of Lesotho’s economy and considered the biggest economic-driver, is not properly regulated. And if it is not properly regulated, Basotho are going to suffer and be hungry because of the conduct of its ministry."

"You are an accounting officer, therefore, you should account for the reporting, not the team. They should only come as a way to back you up."

"The ministry ordered a six-month halt, after which the contractor first claimed M12 million, then M14 million – and now he is threatening to claim an additional M9 million or more."

"We will meet with the ministry to determine whether the stoppage is due to genuine complications or if there’s fraudulent activity involved."

"Although I do not know what the budget entails yet, we are expecting it to address our capital status as it is always low."

"This will affect our capital budget as it will be lower although the US President made the above announcement when budget estimates were already in progress"

"We have observed that the Belo Industrial site is approaching completion, which is a gratifying development. We are aware of the challenges this project has faced, and we believe that had we been involved earlier, some of these issues could have been avoided."

"President Trump is sending a strong message to African leaders: stop relying on foreign aid and start delivering on your promises."

"When Trump campaigned, he told his people what he would do and he delivered in the first 100 days. So, we cannot be shocked that he is doing exactly what he said he would."

"This year, I have heard of groups called Mafielo, Pholoho, and Hoboro. I don’t know what those names mean, but I know this: we are one party. Not everyone can win. There will always be a winner and a loser. What matters is that we stay united."

"The best dancer knows when to leave the stage. The year 2030 will be my time to step aside and support the next leader."

"We are entering a transitional period of leadership. Let’s approach it with clear minds. Make decisions with reason, not emotion. That’s the only way to avoid the chaos that has plagued other parties."

"I must walk through the same fire that my followers are constantly subjected to in our courts."

"Well, much as we were facing similar charges, at the end of the day we are individuals in our own right. Ntate Metsing has his own way of looking at issues and I have mine. I have been very clear from the onset if anything at all should happen to me, it must be here in Lesotho. It must be here, at home. I meant what I said and stick by my words to date."

"The general opinion is that our courts have been polarised by party politics. However, as political party leaders our followers are Basotho who are subjected to proceedings and judgments by the same courts that form part of a polarised judicial system."

"Thabane’s faction was assured that the High Court under the former Acting Chief Justice, ‘Maseforo Mahase, would always rule in their favour, while Prof Nqosa Mahao’s clique knew it could rely on Court of Appeal President Kananelo Mosito ruling in its favour or overturning the lower court’s judgments."

"That on its own tells you there’s no doubt that our courts are compromised by party politics. That is bound to affect everyone. Look, the people I lead approach the same courts for legal recourse, they get burnt in the process. I must walk through the same fire that my supporters are subjected to daily, to get a feel of it so that I push to change what I know."

"Take for instance the brouhaha going on between the courts and the office of the DPP, the unwarranted back and forth on the cases being presided over by foreign judges. You can see that it is because the DPP was able to lobby the foreign judges to act in a certain way, whereas they failed to do the same with our local judges. I guess our local judges would not allow themselves to be used because they are jealously protecting their careers and reputations."

"The manner in which things are playing out now tells you that the office of the DPP only managed to lobby foreign judges but surely hit a brick-wall when it came to our local judges."

"There are people who were assigned specifically to fetch those judges from wherever in the world they were. Nevertheless, I will subject myself to the same justice system as a political party leader and for the sake of my supporters."

"I harbour the ambition of becoming Lesotho’s prime minister one day, and for that to happen, I must subject myself to certain situations with grace as a demonstration that I have the capacity to hold a higher office. How do my supporters, who are being subjected to a suspicious legal system, trust me to lead them if I refuse to walk a mile in their shoes? That’s my argument as a leader."

"Money laundering poses a serious threat to the integrity of the economy and financial system and the security of the citizens."

"The effects of corruption are wide-ranging: corruption discourages investment; limits economic growth and adversely alters the spending of government often to the detriment of future economic growth, and resources are diverted from their most beneficial use."

"Consultancy service is engaged to equip the judiciary with knowledge and skills to better handle corruption, money laundering, fraud, and other related financial crimes. This training is coming at the opportune time, to enhance the capacity of the justice system to deal with aspects of both criminal and civil litigation and to convict criminals who abuse the financial system and to better handle forfeiture of assets related to economic crimes."

"Given that societies and their legal landscape are constantly evolving, preservice legal training cannot be regarded as sufficient to ensure that judges work efficiently throughout their time at the bench, no matter the quality and duration of initial training. It is a judge’s duty to keep informed of changes to legislation and relevant case law to help judges stay up to date, especially given the heavy workload judges face in some cases."

"It is the duty of the government to provide sufficient funding and other resources to those responsible for conducting training and to establish systems to ensure that all members of the judiciary are enabled to undertake training. Judicial training is essential to ensure high standards of competence and performance, and is fundamental to guarantee judicial independence, the rule of law and protection of human rights of all people."

"The reports that I have been receiving have been verbal all the time from the Commissioner; it has always been a call where he would tell me that a number of inmates have escaped and this number were captured and that the other one lost his life. It is only when we meet where that he would elaborate what happened, but I have never received any written report in all the incidences."

"The public was never informed by the Commissioner; I think the public was informed by me when I came to the facility on December 22, 2023, after the incident and subsequent public information that was given by me."

"The roar I heard from officers came to me that I should not insist on going inside to see other inmates; I thought maybe I should keep or maintain the dignity of officers and myself as their boss."

"On the assault of one inmate who ended up dying, we realised that the management did not inform the public that the inmate left this facility already dead; it was only the inmate who was with him that revealed that he was with the corpse in the vehicle."

"I heard his death in passing; it was not a formal conversation; I was not told what conditions that inmate died of."

"These incidents occurred when the Government commemorated International Human Rights Day on December 10, in which the world is condemning any form of violence."

"Today we gather for the launch of the Index of the Laws of Lesotho, 2nd Edition (1800–2024), a pioneering effort by the government of Lesotho under the Lesotho Law Reform Commission."

"I am proud to announce that this project, which is of immense importance to our nation, is supported by the European Union under the Support for the Reform and Strengthening of Governance in Lesotho Programme, a testament to our strong partnership and shared commitment to the rule of law."

"You will recall that the first edition of the Index was launched in 2020 and covered the laws of Lesotho from 1800 to 2018. Today, we present an expanded and updated edition that will serve as a continuously evolving benchmark for our legal system. This initiative will significantly improve the accessibility and transparency of our legal framework."

"The Index is not merely a publication, but a vital tool that provides an organised inventory of all Lesotho’s laws — categorised by year, subject, or other classification — making it easier to assess their current status."

"It is a resource that empowers ordinary citizens, students, professionals, investors, and lawmakers by offering a reliable historical and legal narrative of the laws governing Lesotho."

"These institutions can only function effectively when guided by well-indexed and up-to-date laws. The Index, therefore, is crucial in supporting the objectives of the Strategic Plan — particularly in promoting an effective, transparent, efficient, and equitable justice system; building an informed citizenry; ensuring regulation and protection of civil and political rights; strengthening oversight institutions; and improving service delivery."

"The involvement of experts of such calibre reflects the depth of commitment that has gone into this historic achievement."