A group of citizens and councillors have accused the government of depriving them of their constitutional right to stage peaceful protests and petition Prime Minister Sam Matekane.

They allege that authorities have used ‘excessive’ measures to supress their voices.

These concerns come after councillors advocating for decentralisation of services and some concerned Basotho demanding reduction in electricity tariffs were reportedly prevented from demonstrating and taking their grievances to Matekane.

The two groups allege their efforts were thwarted by the Lesotho Mounted Police Service (LMPS) denying them procession permits. They also claim Matekane’s office declined their requests to meet him.

One of the organisers of the protest that was intended to petition Matekane, Rethabile Mofolo, said the high electricity tariffs were suffocating their households and businesses.

Mofolo said their request was turned down despite them following proper procedures and submitting an application to the LMPS, with a clear objective of their protest early this year, well in advance, as required.

She noted that instead of issuing the permit, the police requested them to provide a letter of confirmation from the Prime Minister’s office that he had agreed to receive their grievances.

“This seemed like a reasonable request, so we reached out to the PM’s office, expecting a straightforward response. That is where our problems started as the officials there took us through a frustrating cycle of referrals and run-arounds. In the end, we failed to receive the requested letter allowing us to hand over our grievances,” she added.

She also recounted that the officials would occasionally tell them that the Prime Minister was too busy to receive their grievances or any government official on his behalf. They therefore, could not agree on a day for the protests.

“We couldn’t march without that permit. It’s clear that the government is more interested in avoiding accountability than in listening to the voices of its citizens.

“The officials in the Prime Minister’s office are deliberately obstructing us from demonstrating our grievances. We believe the Prime Minister is aware of their attitude but is silent and not condemning this behaviour,” Mofolo argued.

She added that they had even thought of taking the legal route to pressure the government to reduce the electricity tariffs but they are restricted by budget constraints.

The councillors, on the other hand, wrote a letter to the premier on July 17 2025 requesting to air their grievances over decentralisation of services, which they had anticipated would be incorporated in the newly passed Tenth Amendment to the Constitution.

In a letter dated September 3, 2025, responding to the councillors’ request, Chief of Staff in the Prime Minister’s office, Sofonea Shale, indicated that Matekane had acknowledged receipt of their letter and the concerns were discussed by his office in a meeting.

Shale further informed the councillors’ committee that Matekane was intending to meet with all councillors on the decentralisation matter, working together with the Ministry of Local Government.

Matekane had also directed the Ministry of Local Government to facilitate the engagement between the three parties

The disgruntled councillors have since accused the Ministry of Local Government, Chieftainship Affairs, Home Affairs and Police of failing to listen to their grievances.

Chairperson of the Councillors’ committee, Motebang Setona, noted that they had also sought intervention from the Christian Council of Lesotho and the European Union, without any success.

Setona said the councillors had approached the Prime Minister’s office with the hope that he would listen to them, instead of referring them to same ministry that failed to listen to attend to them.

The councillors argue that the decentralisation of services would give them back their power since they feel undermined by parliamentarians in their constituencies.

They allege that some MPs have overstepped their mark, taking on roles and responsibilities that belong to them, thereby undermining their authority in the communities they serve.

The councillors, for example, had written to the PM requesting a meeting, but his chief of staff responded, declining their request and instead promising to meet with the Minister of Local Government. However, this meeting hasn’t taken place, and the councillors’ concerns remain unaddressed.

Contacted for comment yesterday, the Public Relations Manager in the Prime Minister’s office, Teboho Sekata, said claims by groups seeking to hold protests or meet with the Prime Minister that they were being denied permission to do so were simply driven by people with their own political agendas.

“Such claims are spread by individuals seeking to tarnish the government’s image,” he said.

He cited the example of street vendors’ group, Khathang Tema Baitšukuli, who were able to meet with Matekane earlier this year, after patiently following the necessary procedures.

Sekata indicated that while the Prime Minister was looking forward to hosting a forum with councillors countrywide, he (Matekane) was shocked to hear them already complaining on different media platforms that they were denied their freedom to protest against him.

“No citizen would be denied to host a peaceful protest as it is their right to do so. We just have a problem of people who fail to follow proper instructions. People should understand that the Prime Minister always has a busy schedule so they cannot just meet him as and when they want,” he noted.

A group of youth has previously accused the LMPS of denying them permission to hold a peaceful protest march on July 4, 2025 when they received a permit with an incorrect date (June 3, 2025), which had already passed. The police referred to this as a typographical error.

The youth alleged that this was intentionally meant to hinder them from protesting after receiving delayed responses from relevant stakeholders before eventually getting the permit with a wrong date.

Efforts to get comment from the LMPS were futile as the spokesperson, Senior Superintendent Mpiti Mopeli, repeatedly said he was in a meeting.

Public assemblies and procession are regulated by the Public Meetings and Processions Act of 2010. The law requires organisers to apply for a permit from the police at least seven days before an event.