The office of the Mohale’s Hoek District Administrator could have overstepped its boundaries when it wrote to street vendors instructing them to vacate their posts in public spaces by today or face unspecified legal action.
The letter dated 17 October 2024 ordered the vendors to remove their goods in parking lots which they have allegedly occupied illegally for many years.
“Not abiding by this order will lead to legal implications because such acts contribute to congestion in towns,” it noted.
The removal of the vendors is meant to pave way for the planned construction of a new bus stop, a project that would address the present problem of traffic congestion in the town.
However, council sources said while there was nothing untoward about removing the vendors from the street to make way for a development project, the DA’s office overstepped its mandate.
They pointed out that it is the duty of the town clerk to make such decisions.
A Mohale’s Hoek urban council official told theReporter in an interview this week that the development and upkeep of towns is an exclusive mandate of the urban council, not the DA’s office.
According to the Local Government Act of 1997, a district administrator is appointed by the minister of local government, in consultation with the prime minister, to represent the interests of the central government at district level.
He/she is responsible for co-ordinating duties and functions of all public officers in that district, other than those employed by local authorities.
All public officers in the district, other than those employed by the local authorities, function under the direct supervision of the DA.
The DA, in carrying out his/her functions and duties under the Local Government Act, is responsible to the minister.
“The DA’s office is clearly overstepping its powers by writing to street vendors telling them to vacate their places. This is the sole responsibility of the urban council,” the source said.
Approached for comment on Wednesday this week, Mohale’s Hoek Town Clerk, Kekeletso Matlosa, said he had not seen the letter from the DA’s office.
Matlosa however, acknowledged that managing the town is the responsibility of the council, but quickly added that the power of the DA cannot be questioned.
Matlosa, who by law is the actual administrator of the town, said the problem is that the town is run from two centres of power – the urban council and the DA. The latter oversees policies in the entire district.
“So, when the DA chips in (albeit unilaterally) to assist the urban council in some of its tasks, that carries more weight,” he indicated.
Matlosa added that plans were afoot for the council to move vendors from parking lots to more appropriate locations, and the issue is actively being pursued with the DA’s involvement.
According to the Local Government Act, there shall be a town clerk for each municipal or urban council.
“Each such town clerk or council secretary shall exercise, perform and discharge all power duties and functions conferred or imposed upon or vested in or delegated to him by or under the Act or any other written law,” it says.
Mohale’s Hoek DA, Moleboheng Lebele, was not available for comment yesterday despite promising to grant this publication an interview.
Local governance expert, Tṥitso Kapa, says there is a grey area on the extent of the powers of the district administrator and the town clerk as far as urban development and administration is concerned.
Kapa explained that the DA represents the executive arm of the government, and therefore has no say in town management.
“These are some of the challenges which will keep cropping up unless the issue of decentralisation is addressed and ironed out. If decentralisation is properly implemented, it would carefully draw the line between the mandates of all parties.
“But in terms of the law, it should be forte for the town clerk, and the town clerk should only answer to the DA on what they are doing.
“In terms of the current Local Government Act, the DA is not supposed to interfere in issues pertaining to street vendors. That task should rather be dealt with by the urban council,” he said.
The apparent overlapping of local government officials is a reminder of the need for government to implement real decentralisation.
In February 2014 the Government of Lesotho adopted the National Decentralisation Policy with the aim of deepening and sustaining grassroots-based democratic governance and promoting equitable local development by enhancing citizen participation and strengthening the local government system, while maintaining effective functional and mutually accountable linkages between central and local government entities.
Specifically, the policy provides for the following key strategic reform actions: adoption of devolution as the model of decentralised governance and service delivery; establishment of local governments with autonomy and executive authority development and implementation of the strategic framework for participatory and integrated planning; establishment of fiscal decentralisation and prudent public financial management; development of a framework for exercising local autonomy and intergovernmental relations.
The policy introduces a set of decentralisation reforms based on devolution. Whether devolution is an appropriate model for Lesotho as a unitary state remains to be seen, but what is clear about the new decentralisation policy is that it proposes a decentralisation dispensation where there is mutual respect between spheres of government and local autonomy.
About nine principles are upheld by the policy with a view to envisage a much more autonomous local government. Those principles are participation, subsidiarity, separation of powers, local autonomy, non-subordination, government as a single system or entity, recognising diversity within uniformity, inclusive governance and accountability.
