Lesotho’s Opposition Party Accuses National Security Service of Intimidation

The Democratic Congress (DC), the main opposition party in Lesotho, has alleged that the National Security Service (NSS) is threatening its upcoming youth league elective conference. The conference, scheduled to take place from tomorrow to Sunday at the Moshoeshoe II High School Hall in Matsieng, aims to elect a new DC national youth committee as prescribed by the party’s constitution.

According to DC Secretary-General Tšitso Cheba, NSS officers have been visiting different DC constituency offices, questioning party officials about the composition of youth delegates to be deployed to the conference. Cheba claims that the NSS operatives wanted information on the names of delegates, their travel plans, and the registration numbers of vehicles that would ferry them to the conference.

The DC feels intimidated by the NSS’s actions, which Cheba believes constitute serious intimidation against the party’s youth cadres. “These children are still young, and they have just reached the age of maturity. They don’t have much experience in these things. So, it is a serious threat that the NSS wants their names,” he said.

The NSS spokesperson, Limpho Gugushe, was contacted to establish if it was the NSS’s mandate to demand such information from political parties holding conferences. However, she refused to comment, citing an “unconducive space” and later ignored further calls.

The DC has also received reports from two lawmakers that NSS members were quizzing and trying to pry details out of them on the delegates and logistics. The party is mandated by its constitution and IEC policies to regularly renew its political structures, and the NSS’s interference is seen as an attempt to undermine this process.

Cheba questioned the NSS’s interest in the DC youth’s elective conference, saying, “Why would they be trying to find the names of those who will be going to the conference? We wonder what interest NSS has on this issue.” He added that the NSS’s snooping constitutes serious intimidation against the DC youth, who are still learning about the political administration of their country.

The DC is calling on the NSS to respect its constitutional rights and allow the party to conduct its internal affairs freely. The party is also urging the government to investigate the NSS’s actions and ensure that they do not interfere with the democratic process.

As Lesotho grapples with high crime rates, the DC’s allegations have raised concerns about the NSS’s role in the country’s political landscape. The party’s youth league elective conference is a significant event, and the NSS’s involvement is seen as an attempt to undermine the party’s internal democracy.