Africa-Press – Lesotho. Makananelo Puseletso had barely finished packing her bags for her new diplomatic assignment in South Africa when a lawsuit challenging her appointment to the cosy job stopped her in her tracks.
Puseletso is the wife of Lejone Puseletso, an MP who saved Prime Minister Sam Matekane’s government after he sued to halt its fall last month. ’Makananelo has been appointed Lesotho’s Deputy High Commissioner to South Africa.
Her deployment to South Africa has now been stopped after Lineo Palime sued the Minister of Foreign Affairs Lejone Mpotjoane saying he unlawfully gave the position to ’Makananelo Puseletso.
Palime argues that the appointment of ’Makananelo as an envoy to Pretoria was flawed. She argues that ’Makananelo’s appointment has not followed the requirements contemplated in the Public Services Act. There are 10 respondents in the case.
Palime said the decision of the Public Service Commission to appoint ’Makananelo to serve at the foreign mission in Pretoria, South Africa, or any other country should be stayed pending finalisation of the case.
She told the court that Mpotjoane should be interdicted and prevented from making the arrangements to facilitate the departure including the logistical arrangements for ’Makananelo to serve at the foreign mission.
“It should be declared that the Public Service Commission has violated provisions of the Public Service Act in appointing ’Makananelo to serve in Pretoria,” Palime said.
Palime told the court that the Public Service Commission was bound to re-advertise the post of Deputy High Commissioner into which ’Makananelo has been appointed.
She said the Public Service Commission was otherwise obliged to follow the various provisions of the Public Service Act regulating appointments into the Public Service.
“The decision of the (Public Service Commission) to appoint (’Makananelo) to the foreign mission should be reviewed, corrected and put aside as irregular and of no force and effect,” Palime said.
Through her lawyer, Attorney Qhalehang Letsika, Palime said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advertised a position of Deputy High Commissioner but later withdrew it.
“I aver that the human resource department in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Relations did not re-advertise the position of Deputy High Commissioner after it was withdrawn,” she said in court papers.
“I do not know if they screened the application of (’Makananelo) in accordance with the dictates of Regulation 23. The moment they failed to discharge their statutory obligations in that regard made the appointment unlawful,” read the court papers.
Palime informed the court that on June 30 this year, Mpotjoane issued an external circular number 2 of 2023 in which he advertised a number of positions including that of Deputy High Commissioner.
She argued that the advertisement did not disclose that the position was tenable at the Lesotho High Commission in Pretoria. But they have since discovered that it may have been intended for other countries.
“However, we cannot exclude the possibility that it may be intended for other countries,” Palime said.
’Makananelo’s husband was little-known in the Revolution for Prosperity until the opposition and some rebels from the party filed a motion of no-confidence against Matekane over a month ago.
Puseletso filed an urgent application in the High Court blocking the vote of no-confidence against Matekane in parliament. The lawsuit bought much needed time for Matekane who went on to woo Prof Nqosa’s Mahao’s Basotho Action Party to back the coalition government.
For More News And Analysis About Lesotho Follow Africa-Press
