By ‘Majirata Latela
Take a smooth-operating ministry, gung-ho board of directors and an obstinate chief executive office. Stir well. What do you get? A tsunami wave in a cesspool.
This is precisely the kind of situation that the government-owned Water and Sewerage Company (Wasco) finds itself in, as the minister of water Nkaku Kabi is mired in controversy involving illegal water supply connections from the multi-million Maloti Metolong dam.
The Metolong Water Supply is implemented by Wasco. The water project known as Metolong Dam and Water Supply Programme, was established under the Lesotho Lowlands Water Scheme overseen by the natural resources ministry.
The dam supplies water to both urban and peri-urban areas that include Mazenod, Morija, Teyateyaneng and Maseru.
The supply runs through several villages to reach the towns in a network of pipelines underground.
However, the project has since been enmeshed in controversy over illegal connections by some communities, some of whom have faced prosecution.
And, it has now emerged that Kabi could be one of those who have illegally connected to the supply without authorisation of Wasco which oversees the treatment and supply of the resource to the designated places.
Irked by being overlooked on supply of water from the dam, several residents in villages where the pipelines run, took it upon themselves to make illegal connections for household and irrigation purposes.
Kabi is alleged to have unlawfully connected water from the dam pipelines to his farm at Thaba-Khupa in the Thaba-Bosiu area, hence his vehement opposition to the prosecution of illegal connectors because he himself is one.
Wasco has been involved in a drawn out legal battle with members of the Metolong and Thaba Bosiu areas who tampered with the pipelines to illegally connect to their homes.
Others have damaged the pipes to erect their own taps from which they draw water for household use, prompting Wasco to institute criminal proceedings against such communities.
Towards the end of last year, Kabi addressed the Metolong community where he spoke strongly against prosecution of people who had illegally connected to the project. He promised to convince Wasco to withdraw the charges, saying it was unfair for villagers in the vicinity of Metolong to be denied access to potable water.
However, Wasco chief executive officer Futho Hoohlo was determined to see the culprits face the might of the law.
Apparently, this did not sit well with Kabi who is now baying for Hoohlo’s blood as CEO.
This week, theReporter visited Kabi’s farm where a big water tank and a stand pipe were seen. Workers there told us he had just left the place.
The councillor for Manonyane A04, Mathibeli Ramaliehe who spoke to the paper on behalf of the councillors in the area, said lack of clean potable water in their dwellings forced the villagers that include those of Qiloane, Ha Senekane and Motanasela to connect water illegally.
“They were forced by adverse circumstances to take matters into their own hands and unlawfully connect to the water pipes. I remember Kabi urging Wasco to withdraw the case but I can’t say for sure if the state-owned entity complied.
“Thaba-Khupa is one of the villages that have seen proliferation of illegal connections. We are still waiting on Wasco to respond to our plea to connect to the water supply. We told them that we do not have a problem paying for the service,” he advised.
This publication has learned that there has been a back and forth of letters between Hoohlo and both the water minister and the Wasco board of directors.
In one of them, the principal secretary of the ministry of water, Malefetsane Nchakha complained to the company’s board chairman Chabeli Ramolise about Hoohlo’s conduct.
Dated November 6 2020, the letter said relations between the ministry of water and agents of Wasco, especially its administrative body, were concerning.
“The ministry is concerned about the lack of cordial working relations between the agents of Wasco and in particular its administrative head in the capacity of the CEO and agents of the ministry,” the letter said.
It claimed that that the CEO had openly displayed intransigence against the authorities of the ministry and that he had cultivated a hostile working relationship between Wasco and the ministry as well as other critical Wasco stakeholders and there was no indication of him seeking to make amends.”
Hoohlo was also accused of cancelling Likakapa Construction (Pty) Ltd tender which participated in the Maseru Water Waste Project (MWWP)-W5a) bidding without following the mandatory procedures that must be followed in terms in the law.
“The ministry further wishes to underscore the position that whilst Wasco enjoys functional and institutional autonomy, the public policy dimension of its mandate cannot be ignored. Instead of instigating criminal prosecution and civil litigations against errant citizens in Metolong area, there must be efforts on part of the chief executive to engage in measures of putting in place the infrastructure that will help citizens in the designated areas to have access to fresh water supply with ease.
“The chief executive is very much recalcitrant towards these initiatives and for that reason this letter is authored as a formal complaint and concern that must be remedied by the board as a matter of urgency and expediency,” the letter reads.
Another letter from the board reads: “The Board of Directors of WASCO in its 6th Extra Ordinary meeting held on the 14th November 2020, resolved to suspend the Chief Executive from office with effect from the 14th November 2020 to the 12th December 2020. This is to facilitate internal disciplinary investigations. The Board has further resolved to appoint Mr. Thelejane Thelejane, the Director of Operations at WASCO, the acting Chief Executive for the duration of the suspension,” the letter reads.
Hoohlo, approached the Labour Court on an urgent basis on the 23rd November 2020, wherein an Interim Court Order was issued in his favour staying and putting in abeyance his suspension. Consequently, Hoohlo resumed duty with WASCO effective from the time the Interim Court Order was issued.
In another instance, Kabi on January 8 2021 complained to the Wasco board was he not satisfied with the performance of Hoohlo when he suspended the new ‘water connections during the critical times of Covi-19 regulations.’
Furthermore, Kabi wrote a letter to the board dated January 14 2021 berating what he called ‘the unsatisfactory performance of Wasco’, and harangued that the board had not demonstrated the required leadership in terms of management for results.
Approached for comment, Kabi was very brief and blunt: “I have not made any illegal connection to Wasco infrastructure at my farm. I have my own borehole. I will not respond to the rest of your questions.”
However, a reliable source within Wasco, who is privy to the goings-on there, is adamant that the accusations against Hoohlo are part of a callous witch hunt aimed at getting rid of him without paying him his benefits.
“They (the minister of water and the Wasco board) just want something to pin on him as a reason for an unceremonious exit. Kabi is not telling you the truth when he says he does not use Wasco water illegally on his farm. He is also illegally connected to the Metolong pipes. Everyone here knows that, but they won’t talk about it for fear of reprisal.
“Where have you ever since a minister advocating for people who have committed an illegal act to be let off the hook just on grounds that that need water? A crime is a crime, no matter who, why and where it is committed. Why should the villagers be spared prosecution when they stole water from Wasco,” the source asked rhetorically.
“If minister Kabi has connected water illegally at his farm, then he should be prosecuted like all others. He has no right to put pressure on the CEO to withdraw the case just because he has a farm at Thaba- Khupa,” the source said animatedly.
Approached for comment, acting Wasco CEO Thelejane Thelejane referred this publication to the public relations office, which responded by referring us back to Thelejane.
At the time of going to print, Thelejane had not responded to our e-mailed questions.
theReporter can confirm that Hoohlo is currently on suspension pending investigations after he allegedly set the police under his control and supervision on the private investigator who was investigating him for misconduct.
Hoohlo is reported to have reported a case of fraud, acting on the premise that the investigator, Quantam Advisory Services had been appointed without following proper procurement procedures of Wasco.
Initially, he was suspended from April 9 for a two-week period. The suspension was extended by a further 30 days from April 22. According to our sources, he is due for a disciplinary hearing on Monday next week.
Approached for comment, Hoohlo declined to give us his side of the story, insisting he was not comfortable talking to the media about his case while it is still ongoing.
