Embattled Prime Minister, Thomas Thabane seems to have come to the end of the road as Lesotho’s government has agreed with South African mediators and political parties to implement a “dignified retirement” for him.
This development was recently disclosed in a joint statement signaling stepped up efforts to end a political crisis.
The joint statement, signed by South African mediator Jeff Radebe and Lesotho Deputy Prime Minister Monyane Moleleki said: “The coalition government of the Kingdom of Lesotho commits to effecting the implementation process or modalities for the dignified, graceful and secure retirement of the right honourable prime minister.”
Radebe told newsmen that although Thabane had pledged to step down in July, the timeline stipulated in the deal was “immediate”.
“There are one or two issues that need to be traversed in order to ensure that all political parties are of the same mind in terms of speeding up that parliamentary process,” he added.
Recall that Thabane has been under pressure to resign owing to a murder case in which he and his current wife are suspected of being involved in the assassination of his previous wife, charges which both of them deny.
Gunmen shot and killed Thabane’s then-wife Lipolelo Thabane on 14 June 2017. Officials charged Thabane’s current wife Maesaiah with the murder this year, and also named Mr Thabane as a suspect – although he has not yet been formally charged.
The embattled PM had pledged to step down at the end of July, but South African mediator Jeff Radebe told journalists in Lesotho’s capital Maseru that “the timeline is immediate,” for his leaving office.
As at the time of filing this report, Thabane’s spokesman Relebohile Moyeye told Reuters news agency that he “can’t confirm if the PM agrees with all that’s in the communiqué… I will only know his take tomorrow”.
Though small and with a population of not more than 2 million, Lesotho’s political upheavals often draw in its bigger neighbour, South Africa, for whom the kingdom’s mountains are an essential source of running water.
