June 3, 2017 will mark the third time in five years that Lesotho has held a general election. The election comes on the heels of Democratic Congress (DC) Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili losing a no-confidence motion in March in Parliament. His unwieldy seven-party coalition degenerated into infighting less than two years after taking office. This is the second coalition failure in three years. In 2014, All-Basotho Convention (ABC) Prime Minister Tom Thabane’s five-party coalition crumbled only two years after taking office. The rapid disintegration of two successive coalition governments and continued political violence at the highest levels of politics and security have tarnished the hope seen at the time.
Tumelo Zulu our reporter talked to Lesotho Minister of Trade Joshua Sethipa who is also a candidate for the Congress for Democracy and this is how it went:
To help us unpack and discuss this further we are joined on the line by:
1. Monyane Moleleki Leader and Candidate:Alliance of Democrats
2. Dr Makase Nyaphisi Commissioner IEC Lesotho
3. Prof Frances Makoa Retired politics Lecturer University of Lesotho
4. Joshua Sethipa Minister Trade Kingdom of Lesotho
