DPP shocks fraud accused

‘MATHATO SEBOKA

MASERU – Fraud suspect Jane Lekunya, was left in shock on Wednesday when he was hauled before the Maseru Magistrate Court as an accused yet he had supposedly been turned a state witness. Lekunya, a Democratic Congress legislator from Mechachane constituency, is implicated in a M150 million corruption, fraud and money laundering scandal involving government tenders for the purchase of agricultural inputs in concert with his wife ‘Makhoase Lekunya, business associate Moeketsi Ntaote and senior officials in the Ministry of Agriculture, that include former Principal Secretary, ‘Mole Kumalo and Procurement Manager, ‘Mapaseka Nkone.

Ntaote had been under investigations since 2022 when he allegedly supplied the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security with counterfeit pesticides.

He had secured a lucrative government tender for the supply and deliver agricultural inputs, including seeds and pesticides.

Ntaote was placed before court around September 2024, upon the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences’ suspicion that the tenders were selectively awarded to him, corruptly.

Speaking to Public Eye yesterday, Lekunya’s lawyer, Advocate Christopher Lephuthing, said he was shocked that while his client has been turned into a state witness he was taken to court as an accused.

“We are challenging that the Directorate on Corruption and Economic Offences and the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) cancelled the deal they entered into with Lekunya and decided to charge him together with the other accused persons in this case,” Advocate Lephuthing said.

He added that they have already filed a constitutional case because they strongly disagreed with the DPP, Advocate Hlalefang Motinyane’s move.

“We have filed because we disagree with what they did. We won’t know with certainty the reasons why they called the deal off until the DPP files their answering papers,” Lephuthing said.

On Wednesday this week when Lekunya arrived at court, Advocate Lephuthing and DCEO’s prosecutor, Attorney Mojalefa Shakhane met Magistrate Mary Khechane in her chambers to discuss these developments that surprised Lekunya’s defence team.

After that meeting Magistrate Khechane told the court that the case would not proceed because the defence had raised an objection, to which Advocate Shakhane said he was not ready to respond because he had just been served the papers.

Advocate Lephuthing’s objection was grounded on the constitutional case that he had just filed to block charges against Lekunya.

Lekunya wants the Constitutional Court to declare the decision of the Director General of the DCEO and DPP to charge him and his wife unfair, discriminatory and an abuse of court process.