DC heavyweight Tampane leaves

‘MANTŠANG KHUTLISI

MASERU – Democratic Congress (DC) heavyweight, Likeleli Tampane, is the latest to server ties with the party amidst speculation there is a splinter group on the horizon.

The DC, founded by the former Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili in 2012, is the biggest opposition party in Lesotho and in parliament.

The DC itself is a splinter party that broke from the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD). The once mighty LCD has become close to nothing after it cracked and cracked, the same fashion its birth-child the DC is following.

In the National Assembly the LCD has but eight seats on Proportional Representation after the last election of 2022 in which the then nascent Revolution for Prosperity won massively.

Tampane told local radio stations she was resigning from the DC where she served as deputy chairperson of the Women’s League. Without hesitation, she said she will be joining the soon to be launched party of Bothata Mahlala.

“I am now a member of the Polasi movement,” Tampane said. Tampane who said she never thought she would ever leave the DC thanked each and every one of the people she worked with while in the party and apologized to those she had wronged.

“I am waiting for Ntate Bothata to launch his party,” she said.

She further said she made a formidable team with the Polasi converts, noting that the caliber of people joining Mahlala have been longing for a strong leader in politics.

For the first time Tampane was bold to speak on the toxic atmosphere in the DC. “I can now confess to the entire nation that the working atmosphere in DC was no longer good,” she added. She said she was ill-treated so bad in DC and for that, she is grateful because she has found a new home in Mahlala.

“I can now sleep well at night and know how to pray,” Tampane said emotionally. Mahlala is the new hope for Lesotho, she said asking for all “Polasi members to be guided by God through it all.”

“What I like most about Mapolasi is that we are in politics where we respect one another, we do not look down at each other, Mapolasi are mature politicians and humble souls,” Tampane said.

She boastfully added that the launch of Mahlala’s new party will bring the world to a standstill by the time it happens. Tampane recalled that during Mosisili’s leadership of the DC, the working environment was good and stated that problem immerged in Mathibeli Mokhothu’s leadership.

She alleged corruption on funds members contributed for building of an official party office, which has failed to materialize.

One of Tampane’s grievances is the endemic culture of youth insults on other members especially senior or prominent members.

“The party just lets it slide,” she protested.

Tampane has been a powerful voice of the DC within its ranks and she incredibly contributed in its.

Tampane served in various roles within the political landscape of Lesotho, including being a member of parliament, a sports minister as well as being involved in advocating for policies that focus on the development of Lesotho with women’s rights, education and social welfare as key.

She gained significant attention when she served as the Minister of Gender and Youth, Sports, and Recreation. It is in this capacity that she worked on advancing gender equality as well as empowering women and the youth.

Her political career in the DC was divined by an advocacy for the for strengthening of democratic processes and improving governance in Lesotho with efforts in championing policies that seek to enhance the lives of disadvantaged groups, especially women and children within the country promoting women’s increased political participation and social inclusion.

First elected in 2012 as a Member of Parliament for the Senqu Constituency in the Mokhotlong district, and re-elected in 2015, Tampane was serving two consecutive terms.