Johannesburg - President Jacob Zuma is to travel to Lesotho on Tuesday to try to resolve the political and military crisis that may be pushing the country closer to civil war.
Zuma, as chairman of the South African Development Community (SADC) security troika, is expected to meet the main players in the crisis.
According to the Lesotho Defence Force, these include renegade former army chief General Tlali Kamoli, whose actions in the capital, Maseru, 11 days ago prompted Prime Minister Tom Thabane to flee to South Africa.
Thabane alleged that Kamoli tried to depose him, but the general has denied this.
After Thabane returned to Lesotho with a strong South African police escort last Wednesday, reports said Kamoli had fled into the mountains with a loyal special forces unit and substantial weaponry.
But Lesotho Defence Force spokesman Ntlele Ntoe told Lesotho’s media on Monday that Kamoli was not in hiding and would meet Zuma in Maseru on Tuesday, along with the officer Thabane appointed to replace him, Brigadier Maaparankoe Mahao.
Thabane is threatening to renege on the undertaking he gave to Zuma in Pretoria last week that he would recall parliament on September 19. His aides say that he cannot recall parliament because of the security threat posed by Kamoli.
Thabane suspended parliament in June because his main coalition partner, Deputy Prime Minister Mothetjoa Metsing, fell out with him and formed a new coalition with opposition leader Pakalitha Mosisili.
His aim in suspending parliament was to prevent Metsing’s new coalition passing a vote of no confidence in him that would topple his government. At their meeting with Zuma in Pretoria last Monday, Metsing agreed, once again, to rescind his new coalition deal with Mosisili.
Thabane fears he will be voted out of power if he recalls parliament. South Africa’s Department of International Relations and Co-operation said on Monday that Zuma would meet King Letsie and the leaders of the governing coalition to assess the progress made in implementing the commitments made to him last week. It did not mention Kamoli.
South African official sources have said if all political mediation fails, the SADC may have to consider military options to resolve the crisis.
Conflicting accounts have been given of the events leading to Thabane’s fleeing the country on August 30.
It has now been suggested that it was Thabane’s intention to fire him on that date that apparently provoked Kamoli to attack police headquarters and police stations, and try to capture Thabane to compel him to resign.
But Thabane got wind of his plans and fled to South Africa before Kamoli’s soldiers reached his official residence. - Independent Foreign Service
Cape Times