{"id":14862,"date":"2022-05-23T09:07:20","date_gmt":"2022-05-23T09:07:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget"},"modified":"2022-05-23T09:54:47","modified_gmt":"2022-05-23T09:54:47","slug":"opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget","title":{"rendered":"Opposition leaders tear into Majoro\u2019s budget"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. <\/strong><\/span>Minister of Finance Dr Moeketsi Majoro\u2019s \u201cambitious\u201d M21 billion budget, split between M15 billion recurrent and M6 billion capital expenditure, has stirred mixed reactions from key opposition leaders, with some praising it while others describing it as \u201cgiving me a feeling of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu\u201d.<\/p>\n

Leaders of the opposition Democratic Congress (DC) and the Movement for Economic Change (MEC), Mathibeli Mokhothu and Selibe Mochoboroane respectively hold the view that Majoro\u2019s budget, which promises a five percent increase in civil servants\u2019 salaries across the board, is not viable considering its M1.8 billion deficit, further calling it \u201cambitious\u201d as according to them, it contributes adversely to Lesotho\u2019s ever bulging wage bill.<\/p>\n

They add while the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) revenue collection has improved in 2020 compared to previous years, Majoro should have provided a sneak peek into his plans of introducing new industries, as revenue alternatives to SACU which have been predicted as likely to decline going forward.<\/p>\n

The duo added, instead of celebrating, Lesotho should look to other revenue alternatives and prepare to wean itself off SACU while also devising strategies of utilising its factories when the US-backed Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which has created as estimated 35 000 textile industry jobs, expires in 2024.<\/p>\n

The World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) have warned Lesotho over the years that the country should cut its ever-ballooning wage bill by trimming its civil service, but so far the opposite has happened, leading to the IMF issuing a statement at the conclusion of its mission in Lesotho early this month, warning government against reckless public spending and salary increases.<\/p>\n

However, Mokhothu and Mochoboroane\u2019s opposition counterpart, Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD) leader Mothetjoa Metsing begs to differ, hailing Majoro\u2019s budget as \u201cpro-people and intended to inject into the economy\u201d.<\/p>\n

Unlike his opposition peers, Metsing dismisses the notion of a ballooning wage bill as but a notion, and further asserts Lesotho should not be ashamed of benefitting from SACU and that instead of weaning itself \u201cwe should negotiate a better deal for ourselves\u201d.<\/p>\n

Majoro\u2019s budget comes against the backdrop of failed promises to effect stringent austerity measures against reckless public expenditure, with the latest being his government\u2019s failure to curb international travel for cabinet ministers and officials, which gobbled up an estimated M230 million, surpassing the initially allocated M80 million by M150 million in the 2019 to 2020 financial year.<\/p>\n

Mokhothu has therefore accused Majoro of failing to manage corruption within Prime Minister Motsoahae Thabane\u2019s four-party coalition government, adding that the Minister of Finance has refrained from touching on it \u201cmeans they have given in to corruption\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I have also noted with this budget is that the Minister is silent on the rampant corruption ravaging government ministries and key state institutions.<\/p>\n

It is obvious this government has given in, realising that they have failed to root out corruption as was their election campaign trump card,\u201d Mokhothu says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile in previous budgets Majoro promised that government would exercise stringent austerity measures, he does not say what he has achieved. He is probably silent because he failed to enforce those measures. \u201d But Mokhothu applauds the five percent salary increase across the board.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, we do applaud the fact that they have increased salaries across the board by five percent although that on its own is going to impact negatively on the ever-ballooning recurrent budget,\u201d Mokhothu says.<\/p>\n

But as is the nature of the opposition, Mokhothu quickly criticises the sum of the recurrent budget which is almost three times the allocated capital expenditure, even questioning its viability.<\/p>\n

\u201cA country\u2019s annual budget is intended to invest in its people to improve their quality of life.<\/p>\n

And that we can determine by how much has been allocated towards economic development. When you look at this budget, the recurrent budget is almost three times more than the capital.<\/p>\n

That on its own endangers this country\u2019s economy,\u201d Mokhotu says. \u201cThis then brings to question the sustainability of this budget, especially when you look at the deficit which is almost M2 billion.<\/p>\n

You then wonder where he is going to get funds to close the gap. I doubt this budget will sustain. \u201d He adds: \u201cI don\u2019t think it viable. We were actually very surprised.<\/p>\n

That is why it has a deficit of M2 billion. It might only be figures on the table, something that might not be realised. I think as government we should look into new ways of generating revenue to allow for our economy to grow.<\/p>\n

Mokhothu further notes that Lesotho has not outlined plans to create new means of generating revenue \u201cnot only with regards to SACU but AGOA as well\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have not had our house in order for a long time, first failing to prepare ourselves for the retrenchment of former mineworkers.<\/p>\n

We have no plan on the way forward with SACU and at the same time AGOA expires in 2020. The question is: what\u2019s going to happen to those factories? \u201cThere are just so many hazards in place.<\/p>\n

The only positive I see is the five percent salary increase across the board. Otherwise I don\u2019t see the minister taking any firm measures towards growing Lesotho\u2019s economy,\u201d Mokhothu says.<\/p>\n

Mochoboroane also questions the viability of Majoro\u2019s budget, arguing that Lesotho entered the concluding financial period with a debt of over M1 billion owed to private companies that had provided government with services but are yet to be paid.<\/p>\n

According to Mochoboroane, Majoro should have first provided a summary of how the last budget was utilised. \u201cFormulating the annual budget is a journey that takes you to a whole.<\/p>\n

It is therefore imperative that when you next table a budget, you take the people on a journey into how the previous year\u2019s budget was implemented and utilised.<\/p>\n

You have an obligation to make an introduction on the performance of the last budget,\u201d Mochoboroane says. \u201cBut there is no such in this case and my belief is that it is not there because of the poor performance of the last budget.<\/p>\n

It is very poor. For instance, we entered the 2019\/20 financial period with a debt of over M1 billion owed to private companies. \u201cBut when you listen to the budget speech now, there is absolutely no indication that the issue of Basotho who are still owed after providing services to government will be addressed.<\/p>\n

He also lambasts the recurrent budget in comparison to the capital budget which he says has increased dramatically from last year\u2019s M13 billion, further noting it is almost three times the developmental expenditure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you look at the M21 billion which is the total sum of this budget, it is three times the Capital Budget with a deficit of M1.8 billion.<\/p>\n

It leaves one wondering how much the wage bill has increased, if our recurrent budget has shot from M13 billion to over M15 billion,\u201d Mochoboroane says.<\/p>\n

\u201cProjects that were proposed in last year\u2019s budget continue to feature in this one,\u201d he asks.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor instance, the solar energy project that was supposed to be implemented at Ha Ramarothole appears in the current budget.<\/p>\n

I challenge you to go back three years, it was there in 2017, 2018, 2019 and it is here now. If you were to go to Ha Ramarothole to assess there has been any work on the ground; you will find nothing,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n

Hence, Mochoborane says he doubts the 2020\/21 budget will be funded and implemented as Majoro outlined, further blasting him for failing to curb reckless public spending.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat does this say? That a budget speech is all about stringing together nice English words with not intent to implement anything. And it is sad the nation cannot even hold them accountable for failure to fulfil their promises.<\/p>\n

The discouraging manner in which the previous year\u2019s budget was implemented tells you that this one faces a similar fate,\u201d Mochoroane says. \u201cThe 2019\/20 budget and the ones before it promised to implement austerity measures to curb excessive public spending, but you don\u2019t hear the minister of finance touching on it because he failed to realise any success.<\/p>\n

When you look at the last budget, government was allocated M80 million for international travel, only for it to shoot to M230 million. This then means it would have been difficult for him to explain how that came to be.
\nMochoborane further alleges the 2020\/21 budget for old age pensions, which promises an M50 increase, was compiled using false statistics thus exaggerating the actual amount that is supposed to be channelled towards the grants.<\/p>\n

\u201cLook at the Old-Age pensions. It is well that they have been given an M50 increment but the statistics used to make those estimates includes ghost beneficiaries.<\/p>\n

No one can take me up on that because I have been on the ground. \u201cFor three days in December, we picked out about 300 ghosts in the old-age payroll, with civil servants later picking out about 1 400 ghosts.<\/p>\n

If you were to translate that in real terms, you will establish that the country has lost about M15 to 18 million because the old-age payroll is compiled based on a false picture,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

The MEC leader also has a gripe with Lesotho relying on SACU and AGOA as major revenue sources, adding there must be new, sustainable means devised by Majoro, who in all his three previous budgets complained about declining SACU receipts.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile it has been indicated that SACU collections have improved this year, it is not sustainable. IMF has warned that the revenue is going to decline going forward.<\/p>\n

The last three budgets addressed the declining revenue and the future of AGOA in Lesotho, but there are no clear strategies how government hopes to close that gap,\u201d Mochoboroane says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is therefore wrong for government to assume that applying more taxes on tobacco and alcohol will generate revenue.<\/p>\n

It is only going to create chaos because government has not conducted any feasibility study, especially when there is tobacco and alcohol being smuggled into the country.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow people are going to lean more towards smuggling tobacco and alcohol.<\/p>\n

\u201d He further asserts that such increases meant the burden is going to fall on consumers.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you increase the oil levy, is it because you have had consultations with taxi operators, car owners and users of such services? It says passengers are going to bear the brunt because operators are going to increase transport fares and Basotho are going to suffer the most,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

But Metsing sings a different tune from his opposition colleagues, praising the budget for being pro-people and aimed at \u201cinjecting into the economy\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see a budget that is pro people, and which is intended to inject into the economy of the country. SACU has brought us a lot of money this year, and that on its own is to be celebrated,\u201d Metsing says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are also glad that there is a five percent increase across the board, although it doesn\u2019t change the status quo much as people remain worse off due to failure to increase their salaries last year.<\/p>\n

However, he expresses concern on inflation which is estimated at 4.8 percent, saying it means that \u201cthere is little disposable income coming to the people\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is the part that doesn\u2019t sit well with me,\u201d Metsing says.<\/p>\n

Quizzed on the recurrent budget versus the capital coupled with IMF and World Bank warning to guard against a ballooning wage bill, Metsing says it is impossible to trim jobs in order to cut the wage bill.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs far as I am concerned, there are situations that we need to make peace with.<\/p>\n

You cannot trim Lesotho\u2019s wage bill by cutting down the number of civil servants as that simply translates into the increase in poverty,\u201d Metsing says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I need is for Lesotho to make deliberate efforts to grow the economy. I\u2019m saying this because the ballooning wage bill is just not in the abstract.<\/p>\n

What is it big against? Probably the rate at which Lesotho\u2019s economy is growing. If you like, you to compare us to countries with bigger wage bills whose civil servants earn much more than we do but whose economies are much bigger.<\/p>\n

He adds: \u201cIt all depends on the rate at which we grow our economy and Lesotho\u2019s political climate has a bearing on how things have turned out.<\/p>\n

It makes it difficult to attract investors. There are these political tensions all the time, which some people take for mere gymnastics. At the end of the day, Lesotho bears the brunt of the damage.<\/p>\n

Regarding the introduction of new industries to close the gap likely to be left by declining SACU revenues, Metsing proposes instead that Lesotho should seek a better deal with South Africa, saying the country\u2019s economic fortunes are tied to its wealthier neighbour.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy stance has always been that we need improved cooperation with South Africa if we are to prosper economically as a country.<\/p>\n

There have been views that we should be that country\u2019s tenth province while those to the contrary advocate the removal of borders to allow for free movement,\u201d Metsing says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hundred percent, agree with the fact that we should remove the borders while still very much preserving Lesotho\u2019s sovereignty.<\/p>\n

That would mean free movement of persons and improved prospects of Basotho securing employment. It would also enable companies registered in Lesotho operate freely in that country.<\/p>\n

Like in the EU region, there would be free movement of persons, capital, commodities and services. \u201d \u201cIf we were to engage South Africa on this, we could wean ourselves off SACU, yes.<\/p>\n

But I am for negotiating a better deal that respects our sovereignty like the EU. I am actually a little bit worried that South Africa is not assisting to facilitate such deals. The sooner we negotiate that which we can use to unlock our potential as Lesotho, the better. \u201d<\/p>\n

The LCD leader also reminisces on how South African President Cyril Ramaphosa once advised former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili to \u201ccome up with a dispensation that would be mutually beneficial to both countries.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need that dispensation with South Africa because it is our only neighbour. If the Europeans can do it, why can\u2019t we? I think we need to be negotiating a number of things.<\/p>\n

And, I don\u2019t think weaning ourselves off SACU should be a priority but rather how we can negotiate a better deal,\u201d Metsing says. \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t be ashamed of the SACU revenue, we are not an island.<\/p>\n

We are part of this community and if South Africa doesn\u2019t realize that now, they will one day. There will be a time when these other SADC countries around South Africa will intensify their cause and remind it that those are artificial borders.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Government Spokesperson and Minister of Communications Thesele \u2019Maseribane, has hailed the budget as inclusive and considerate of all sectors of society, dismissing concerns that the budget merely mimics previous budgets.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a huge difference between this budget and the previous one.<\/p>\n

My understanding is that this budget prioritizes infrastructure in the form of telecommunications networks, water and electricity. In Lesotho we have the challenge of ministries that work in silos.<\/p>\n

We should try to work in such way that when we take services to a particular area, we do it at the same time,\u201d \u2018Maseribane says. \u201cWe are looking at the highlands from a telecommunications perspective, that the signal there is either poor or non-existent.<\/p>\n

As such, if we are planning to install 48 BTS this year, preference should be given the highlands, just as we are taking our fibre there to ensure that people are not left behind.<\/p>\n

He points to the fact that this budget focuses on good nutrition amidst persistent reports of stunting in Lesotho\u2019s children under the age of five, perpetuated by poverty and hunger.<\/p>\n

It is a good budget, especially if one can recall that His Majesty King Letsie III is the champion of nutrition in Africa. If we don\u2019t step up, then we will be failing in the mandate that Africa has entrusted us with.<\/p>\n

Maseribane again notes that Majoro also placed emphasis on political stability which is a prerequisite to a thriving economy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe shouldn\u2019t give money to the Lesotho National Development Corporation without considering that there are Basotho locals who can as easily build factories for us. This budget addresses major challenges that Basotho are grappling with such as poverty, lack of infrastructure, poor health, education, etc. \u201d<\/p>\n

He is quick to come to government\u2019s defence against accusations that it failed to implement the previous year\u2019s budget as had been presented, saying \u201cestimates don\u2019t mean cash\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cEstimates don\u2019t mean that there is cash. It is about collecting all we can, then saying to Basotho, this is what we have.<\/p>\n

We have the Lesotho Revenue Authority as the tax collectors, when we increase a bit of tax here, a bit there, they have more to pour into the bag. Another serious challenge is the conflict between China and the United States, which has been brewing. It has affected our revenue as we could not relax,\u201d \u2019Maseribane says.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Lesotho<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Lesotho. Minister of Finance Dr Moeketsi Majoro\u2019s \u201cambitious\u201d M21 billion budget, split between M15 billion recurrent and M6 billion capital expenditure, has stirred mixed reactions from key opposition leaders, with some praising it while others describing it as \u201cgiving me a feeling of d\u00e9j\u00e0 vu\u201d. Leaders of the opposition Democratic Congress (DC) and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":14861,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,5,8,16],"tags":[233,246,245],"class_list":["post-14862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-economy","category-homepage-english","category-twitter","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-lesotho","tag-lesotho"],"yoast_head":"\nOpposition leaders tear into Majoro\u2019s budget - Lesotho<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Minister of Finance Dr Moeketsi Majoro\u2019s \u201cambitious\u201d M21 billion budget, split between M15 billion recurrent and M6 bill ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Opposition leaders tear into Majoro\u2019s budget\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Minister of Finance Dr Moeketsi Majoro\u2019s \u201cambitious\u201d M21 billion budget, split between M15 billion recurrent and M6 bill ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Lesotho\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-05-23T09:07:20+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-05-23T09:54:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/sites\/62\/2022\/05\/postQueueImg_18-628b59bf0c5b5.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"570\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"14 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Opposition leaders tear into Majoro\u2019s budget\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-05-23T09:07:20+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2022-05-23T09:54:47+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget\"},\"wordCount\":2894,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/sites\/62\/2022\/05\/postQueueImg_18-628b59bf0c5b5.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Africa Press\",\"Africa Press-Lesotho\",\"Lesotho\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"economy\",\"homepage-english\",\"twitter\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/lesotho\/all-news\/opposition-leaders-tear-into-majoros-budget\",\"name\":\"Opposition leaders tear into Majoro\u2019s budget - 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