ABC youth leader breathes fire after losing election
MASERU — Mohoalohoalo Jane, the former All Basotho Convention (ABC) youth league publicity secretary, is a very unhappy man after he failed to land the youth wing’s presidency on Saturday.
Jane lost the presidency to Taelo Ntsokotsane.
In an interview with the Lesotho Times on Tuesday a fuming Jane alleged the whole election process “was devoid of transparency and fairness”.
He accused the party’s treasurer general, Sam Rapapa, of interfering with the election process at Ecol premises in Khubetsoana.
Rapapa was observing the election on behalf of the ABC’s national executive committee.
Jane alleged that key clauses of the ABC constitution were not adhered to in the selection of candidates thereby “compromising the election”.
He also alleged that Rapapa dissolved the conference before the counting of votes was completed telling those who were interested in seeing the rest of the results to go to the ABC headquarters.
“He also ended up participating in the election by issuing orders and giving directions although his role was only to observe the process,” Jane said.
Jane also lashed out at former youth league president, Libe Moremoholo, for not ensuring that the conference passed resolutions and that the new committee was given a mandate for the next three years of its tenure of office.
He added that the ruling party had dismally failed to observe its own constitution when it failed to ensure that the party’s leader and Prime Minister Thomas Thabane closed the conference.
Jane said he felt compromised because candidates he was competing with “probably did not qualify to contest the election”.
He said under section C (1) of the ABC constitution it is a requirement that all who contest executive committee, women’s and youth leagues elections be members of the party for no less than 36 months.
“The section adds that these candidates should also have been members of their respective constituency committees, be it the constituency youth or women’s committees,” Jane said.
“The constitution adds that members should also have paid their annual subscription, were not at any given time expelled from the party, be familiar with the ABC constitution and willing to protect the party at all costs.”
In the absence of a screening process to verify if candidates met these conditions, Jane said, the election was seriously compromised because “there are many people in the new committee who don’t meet these requirements”.
He added that it was weird that the ABC expected people to adhere to the country’s constitution “when we as a ruling party are not doing the same”.
“If we have our own law setting conditions for members to participate in various structures of the party, why compromise it?” Jane quipped.
He added it was time the ABC rooted out corruption from within its ranks if “we want to be seen to be fighting corruption”.
“The election process was devoid of transparency and fairness. I’m an advocate of these principles and fought for that during the national election campaigns,” Jane said.
“Why do we as a party continue to be corrupt when we never cease to accuse the IEC (Independent Electoral Commission) of such? Why do we need free and fair elections at national level when we can’t exercise that in our own party?”
Jane said the new youth executive committee is faced with mammoth challenges because it was not issued with a roadmap with which to work and mechanisms to tackle challenges facing the youth.
He accused Moremoholo of rushing the election process instead of ensuring that the conference made resolutions and formulated a mandate for the new committee.
“No resolutions were made. This new committee has no mandate. In the absence of a clear mandate to tackle challenges facing the youth, how is it expected to operate?” Jane asked.
“The conference is one of the party’s structures serving as a platform to discuss issues and make important decisions. It was not the case with this conference.”
He said the Tsikoane, Stadium Area, Maseru Central, Motimposo, Likhoele and Mafeteng constituencies had already lodged complaints regarding the election process and results.
Comment by Young on 6 September 2012:
achee hee li ea tena ntho tsena tsa lipolotiki!!!!!!! e eeke ke MA DC feela a nang mathata
Comment by mooa khootla on 6 September 2012:
Ha li JANE maro ntja tsa setsomi
Comment by halala on 6 September 2012:
hona ke mathata joale, halalaaaaaaaaaaaa lonaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
Comment by koena on 6 September 2012:
Mohoalohoalo,amohela sephetho hlee!!!! liojele likhetho.
Comment by Oa thata on 6 September 2012:
Mohoalohoalo hao oa etsa mosebetsi oa hau oa ho fereha bacha ABC hore ba bone o le a right/capable candidate to lead them,so let alone the winning man do the job.talking over the media does not guarantee you to be the best man for that position.in politics you have to go out and conguer people’s hearts.
ke kopa o ts’ehetse Ntsokotsane,if there is a complain,you know what you have to do.La CHABA
Comment by Taylor on 6 September 2012:
“when we as a ruling party are not doing the same”.I Thought the country was ruled by coalition.
Comment by lehoki on 6 September 2012:
MOHALOHALO GO TO SCHOOL YOU ARE VERY INTELLIGENT, TLOHELA CHELETE EA BO CLERK, JOALE LE `MUSO O SITOA HO O SHEBELA HO BETERE HOBANE HA ONA THUTO, DONT AEGUE GO TO SHOOL FIVE YEARS FEELA HA RE NKA `MUSO ABC YOU WILL BE THE PS , GO TO SCHOOL DONT CRY. E SALE O LULA MOO O SA EE SEKOLONG
I WANTED TO OFFER SOMETHING BETTER BUT I LEARNED HORE YOU DONT HAVE QUALIFICATIONS
KEA U RATA GO TO SCHOOL
Comment by Astone on 6 September 2012:
The issues of which Jane raised are of vital imprtance,i agree with you Jane coruption should not be tolerated at any level of govenance,why are you raising such petinent ussues only after loosing the elections,why if you have won,my point here is,your are also not to be trusted,the is a high probability that your corrupt,so now you wnt sympathy because of your terrible loss,you go to hell,we don’t care.
Comment by Bobete on 6 September 2012:
Political tolerance and growth. Ke belalela hore monna enoa oa heso o ilea iketla eaba ha ferehe bakhethi hobane ho thoe oa tsebahala. Joale ba ile bakuti ka likere amohela ntja ‘me kamoso o tla ithuta ka liphoso tsa hau. Tlohela ho itlontlolla u setho se matla se tla nka karolo ka hara lekhotla la heno.
Comment by Sekutu on 6 September 2012:
Ao phephi ngoana monna,tsoha u itlhotlhore u tsoele pele ka bophelo, ho hloloa ha se nthoe monate kea lumela,ho lona ba babang ke re Mosotho o re qeba la monna e mong ha tsehoe.
Comment by Sekutu on 6 September 2012:
Ao phephi ngoana monna,tsoha u itlhotlhore u tsoele pele ka bophelo, ho hloloa ha se nthoe monate kea lumela,ho lona ba babang ke re Mosotho o re qeba la monna e mong ha le tsehoe.
Comment by Lefefooane on 6 September 2012:
I urge comrade Mohoalohoalo to accept defeat. While raising very important issues which I urge the ABC to attend to urgently I would advise my friend and comrade Mohoalohoalo to stay calm. Just like in anything Mohoalohoalo should use proper channels to lodge his complaint and those who receive his complaint should investigate and resolve comrade Mohoalohoalo’s complaint as soon as possible. Otherwise we will continue to have our structure infiltrated by potoana guys. To me it is of utmost importance for one to have been the member of ABC for atleast 36 months for one to make way to any leadership lest we get our leadership being made of opportunists who run away from potoana. La chaba!!!
Comment by thaba-tseka 74 on 7 September 2012:
amohela morena Jane polotiki hase ntoa hoba taba tseo tsa hao ha u na le bo nnete ba tsona Taelo una le 37/8 months ele setho sa ABC…HAPE LIBE ena une ana le bokae moho le wena haletaba litho tsa komiti tlohellang meharo ena bo ntate….
Comment by Lidie on 7 September 2012:
Ke hore le hanne ho kena sekolo, joale le se le re polotiking moo ke ‘maneng. Shame upon you all, le tla sebeletsa bacha joang ha le ichebile bo lona. Ache! Ke hore lea tena, monghali Jane ntsetsa thuto pele ntate u tsebe hoba le office ea bophelo, ena ea three years is futureless. Take my advice
Comment by Tebang on 7 September 2012:
Basotho need justice to be practiced at all levels for the better tomorrow. I strongly urge you to lorge a complain if you have good facts
Comment by 'Molomane on 8 September 2012:
Mohoalohoalo, ikele sekolong u tle u tsebe ho occupy a public office. Your tongue and popularity only will not work for you in politics tsa ABC, where there are many who are enlightened.
Comment by Lesotho on 10 September 2012:
Ha re Tloheleng taba tsa toala re shebe tsa rona macongo(tsoene ha e ipone makopo)joale rona malcd re cha re tsolang ,coalition does not mean we are one party with abc ,joale le se lele manasi ,tsa lona le tla li sheba neng. Le ea tseba hore mandate oa rona ke ofe ha joale ,re tla ba lika ba nahana hore ba re chitile!!!ba tla bona mohlolo Haufinyana haholo.ba ile ba wina life likhetho haese metsing ea ba rekiselitseng livouto tsa sechaba sa lcd ,a nahana hore after 2.5 yrs Toala e tla mofa hore ebe tonakholo re sa tlabe re bone .Ke lcd koloi ena . E kae Bloc!!!!!!!!
Ea fofa Ntsu!!!!!!!
Comment by MonnaMosotho_Balichabeng on 11 September 2012:
Jane aku butle, amohela tlholo morena!!!