It’s time for Lesotho to rise – Ramaphosa

President Cyril Ramaphosa says Lesotho has moved into a “positive trajectory” as a result of various stakeholder who committed themselves to a dialogue on reforms that would ensure peace and stability in the mountain kingdom.

Ramaphosa, who as then deputy president was appointed by Southern Africa Development Community as its facilitator in Lesotho since the outbreak of violent clashes among different groups and a shooting between members of the army, addressed the second and last Multi-Stakeholder National Dialogue Plenary on national reform in Maseru on Wednesday. He was impressed by the progress that has been made after the interactions among parties involved in the dialogue.

Lesotho informed the gathering that the recent SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government held in Tanzania in August applauded the Lesotho government and all relevant stakeholders for their commitment to the national reform process and for the progress they achieved thus far.

“I also applaud the Facilitation Team led by retired South African deputy chief justice, Dikgang Moseneke, who despite his busy schedule made time to engage with us in order to forge a way forward. Since the inception of this national dialogue, the goal has been clear – to realise the Lesotho that the people of this kingdom want.

The president was overjoyed as he reported that the plenary engagements had helped Basotho to reach consensus on all identified areas of reform including constitutional, parliamentary, judicial, security, and public sector reforms as well as reforms in the media and economic sectors.

“The choice of the seven thematic areas for reforms ably captures the significant interplay between the political, social, and economic factors that impact on stability,” he said.

According to Ramaphosa, the second Multi-Stakeholder National Dialogue Plenary has been a critical milestone in forging a political consensus on the multi-sectoral national reforms and reconciliation in the Kingdom of Lesotho. He said the dialogue’s plenary success further demonstrated the commitment Lesotho people to “building a prosperous, peaceful and united country”.

“You have demonstrated that no difficulties you encounter along the way will succeed in reversing the gains you have already made. In pursuit of the common good and a common goal, political differences have had to be put aside, sacrifices and compromises have had to be made, and patience and tolerance has had to be observed. Having forged ahead in this spirit, the future of the Kingdom of Lesotho is indeed bright. The people of Lesotho and the outside world have been watching developments here in Maseru with keen interest. Everyone wants us to succeed, I encourage you to maintain the momentum,” Ramaphosa said.

The president praised the national dialogue planning committee, which facilitated the dialogue for the critical role it played in paving the way for both the first and second plenaries and the role of the non-governmental organisation under the Lesotho Council of NGOs, which put together all reports used in the discussions at the last plenary.

According to Ramaphosa, one of the foremost aspirations of the African Union’s Agenda 2063 is of a continent that is stable and at peace with itself. He said the Kingdom of Lesotho, like its neighbours, was on a path to meet the sustainable development goals.

“If we are to realise the aspirations of all our countries, we must step up our efforts to strengthen political stability in our respective nations and to drive development to meet the needs of our citizens. As we are in this room, we carry with us the goodwill of all the people of this great Kingdom, who want us to succeed. And succeed we shall.

“The Kingdom is now on a positive trajectory, let us keep it up and let us not falter. Let us remain resolute, let us ensure that the foundation laid today for peace, stability and development in the Kingdom is jealously guarded.

“The process you have been through brought to mind the renowned poem by Maya Angelou and I just want to read two excerpts from it: where she speaks about the hope of being able to pick oneself up from a terrible situation and rise and keep rising.

“’This is the time for Lesotho to rise because with all this reform, your time, Lesotho has come to rise’.”

– ericn@citizen.co.za

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