A former diplomat wants the High Court to order Prime Minister Sam Matekane to appoint him the principal secretary of the Ministry of Finance. Dr Mohale Phehlane, a part-time lecturer at the National University of Lesotho, claims he was recommended for the principal secretary’s position but Matekane “shifted goal posts” and instead appointed Nthoateng Lebona last December.
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Lebona, whose contract as principal secretary of finance had ended, is named as the second respondent in the lawsuit that also cites the Public Service Commission and the Attorney General.
Dr Phehlane is seeking an order to block Lebona’s appointment pending the finalisation of his case.
He wants the court to declare him the successful candidate who should therefore be appointed as PS of finance.
He also wants the High Court to order the prime minister to release the record of the meeting that decided to appoint the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as the recruitment agency for vacant positions of principal secretaries.
That record, he argues, should also be accompanied by the details of the outcome of the interviews conducted by the UNDP on the government’s behalf.
Dr Phehlane argues that Matekane appointed Lebona despite that she had not applied for the job when it was initially advertised in March last year.
He alleges that the government re-advertised the same job after the interview panel had recommended his appointment as per the initial advert and the results of the interview.
This, he says in his papers filed last December, was a “scheme” to sabotage him and benefit Lebona.
He claims he discovered that there was resistance to his appointment when his name was missing from the list of principal secretaries who were due to start work after the interviews.
Dr Phehlane says when he complained, the then Minister of Public Service, Richard Ramoelesti, told him that Lebona had been appointed as acting principal secretary of finance.
He says while waiting for Lebona’s acting term to end he discovered that the position was being re-advertised.
Lebona was subsequently appointed.
Surprised by this turn of events, Dr Phehlane instructed his lawyers to write to the prime minister complaining that this was “unlawful” because he had passed the interview and had been recommended for the position.
He argues that Matekane’s decision to re-advertise the job and appoint Lebona was a deviation from the UNDP’s recommendations and is “so outrageous in its defiance of logic or accepted moral standards”.
“He himself (Matekane) delegated the power to appoint the PSs to UNDP because meritocracy connoted openness, frankness, honesty and absence of collusion, favouritism, bribery, corruption or underhand dealings and considerations of any sort,” Dr Phehlane tells the court.
“My contention is that once a recommendation has been made by UNDP and or Public Service Commission, the Prime Minister has no statutory discretion, authority, or power to ignore, vary or set aside such a recommendation.”
Dr Phehlane says the new advert introduced new elements that were meant to “elbow” him out of the position.
He alleges that the idea to change “goal posts” through the new advert was “evidentially initially conceived during the extensions of the acting appointment”.
He says he believes records will show the possibility of a conspiracy to change the qualifications for the job.
“I am entitled to the outcome of the interview I attended,” he said, adding that he maintains Lebona’s appointment is a “nullity”.
The court ruled that Dr Phehlane’s application was not urgent and should be treated as a normal case.
This means that Lebona will continue as principal secretary unless the court rules otherwise.
Given the backlog in civil cases, it might be months before his application is heard.
In a letter of demand to Matekane, Dr Phehlane had argued that he was the best candidate because of his experience and academic qualifications.
He holds a PhD and a Master’s Degree from Washington International University. He has several postgraduate diplomas. His experience includes various positions in the Ministry of Finance and as a diplomat.
Staff Reporter
