(MENAFN- The Post) MASERU – Opposition parties are fuming after the government this week picked five companies to maintain its fleet without going through a tender process.
In a January 27, 2023 savingram, the Ministry of Finance said it had appointed Maseru Toyota, Maputsoe Toyota, Lesotho Nissan, Benny Enterprise, and Mdlokovana to maintain the government's fleet.
The savingram, titled Interim Vehicle Maintenance Guidelines, says the vehicle maintenance contract signed between the Lesotho government and Fleet Services Lesotho (FSL) in 2020“experienced serious challenges that involved the suspension of services in 2021 which were later resumed partially in 2022”.
“Since then the government made attempts to resolve some issues which were under its control without success,” it reads.
It also says the Ministry of Finance held a meeting with local vehicle service providers accredited by FSL.
“These are Maseru Toyota, Maputsoe Toyota, Lesotho Nissan, Benny Enterprise, and Mdlokovana,” it reads.
It says the purpose of the meeting was to discuss“the possibility of working directly with the government while processes of resolving issues between the government and the FSL shareholders are underway”.
This has however infuriated opposition parties that have accused the government of corruptly dishing out jobs without going through a tender process.
The Democratic Congress (DC)'s deputy leader, Motlalentoa Letsosa, told thepost that the party will soon call a press conference to address the matter.
“We always knew that these rich people would start dishing out tenders to themselves,” Letsosa said.
He said they have been warning the nation about the same people even before the general elections“but they called us names saying we have been benefiting too, now look”.
“The time for the rich people to eat in the face of hungry Basotho has come,” he said.
“No one should cry, we warned them not to vote for these people and they did not listen.”
He complained that the companies mentioned on the savingram did not even tender for the job.
“We are surprised that no tendering processes were followed here.”
He added that when giving themselves the tenders the government suspended the initial company that had been awarded the tender.
“It is not fair at all. How can you be the government and do business with yourself?”
Letsosa said the DC is“against the individualism that is being practised by the parties in government by not advertising the tenders so that all interested parties can bid”.
The Socialist Revolutionaries (SR) leader, Teboho Mojapela, said“the RFP heavyweights (made) their riches through corruption”.
“We always warned the people that these rich men would steal tenders at every chance they get, now they are doing just that,” Mojapela said.
“As a rich man I never did business with the government,” he said.
“This country needs rich leaders on the forefront, but not corrupt ones.”
He said time will expose what Basotho have called upon themselves by voting for the current government.
“They are showing their true colours now.”
He added that this will be a lesson to Basotho to start looking at qualities of politicians when voting.
“They must vote for people who fear God and are faithful,” he said.
“The RFP people are corrupt and all of them will never change, they are going to continue enriching themselves.”
The Basotho Action Party (BAP) deputy leader, Lebohang Thotanyana, said the government is“committing a crime by not issuing tenders for the job”.
“Mdlokovana is an interested party, it is a big mistake to give him a tender unless it is now their policy to award themselves tenders,” Thotanyana said.
Clute Mdlokovana, the owner of the car maintenance chain of businesses named after his name, is the Revolution for Prosperity (RFP) MP for Mohale's Hoek constituency.
Thotanyana said Mdlokovana will not be able to keep service providers to the government accountable as an MP“because he too is a service provider to the government”.
He also said the previous governments always advertised tenders“but these people just sit down and award themselves tenders, they did not even tender”.
The Basotho National Party (BNP) secretary general, Moeketsi Hanyane, also condemned the government's move.
He recalled that during the BNP government, Prime Minister Leabua Jonathan once barred his ministers from being actively involved in running businesses.
“He told Chief Peete Peete to sell all his buses so that he could give a chance to other Basotho to do business,” Hanyane said.
“It is high time Basotho as a nation stood up to condemn the bad behavior of the RFP,” he said.
“It is not fair that the already rich people will be richer while other citizens suffer,” he said.
“Mdlokovana is a Member of Parliament, imagine how many millions he is going to make with this deal with the government.”
Nkheli Liphoto