MASERU, June 8 (Reuters) – Lesotho opposition leader Thomas
Thabane was sworn in on Friday as the mountain kingdom’s new
prime minister after he ousted the man who held the job for 14
years by cobbling together a narrow coalition government.
The smooth transition will allay fears for a rerun of 1998,
when post-poll wrangling led to weeks of unrest that ultimately
triggered military intervention by neighbouring South Africa and
Botswana to restore order.
“This is not my victory but your victory as the nation
because you are the ones who elected us into power,” Thabane, a
72-year-old career civil servant and former foreign minister,
said at the swearing in ceremony in the capital Maseru.
Pakalitha Mosisili, prime minister for 14 years, accepted
defeat this week after Thabane managed to forge the coalition
after elections held almost two weeks ago.
Mosisili’s Democratic Congress party had the most seats with
48 while Thabane’s All Basotho Convention came second with 30.
But Thabane managed to tap into anti-Mosisili sentiment among
smaller parties to get a slim majority in the 120-seat
parliament.
Since independence from Britain in 1966, Lesotho – entirely
surrounded by South Africa – has undergone several military
coups although the army and police told election monitors before
the poll they would act professionally and not take sides. The
capital on Friday was calm.
Unrest would have dented a $4 billion economy, which is
forecast to expand at 4 percent this year due to a boom in
diamond mining and a recovery in the farming sector after
serious flooding in 2011.
Besides a slice of regional customs receipts, Lesotho’s big
earner is hydropower exported to South Africa from the massive
mountain ranges that have made it a favourite of trivia fans as
“the world’s highest country” – its lowest point is 1,380 metres
(4,528 feet) above sea level.
(Reporting by Marafaele Mohloboli; Writing by Ed Stoddard;
Editing by Alison Williams)
© Thomson Reuters 2012 All rights reserved
