Lesotho PM faces vote of confidence over his "interfering" wife

Lesotho Prime Minister Thomas Thabane faces a no-confidence motion for apparently allowing his wife to meddle in government affairs, as political clashes shake the ruling party and threaten to break the coalition government.

The motion was tabled in Parliament this week by a member of President Bashabo's (ABC) convention in Thabane, highlighting the possibility that he is convening early elections in the tiny mountain kingdom of southern Africa.

"We hereby propose a motion that this House has no confidence in a Lesotho Government headed by Prime Minister Thomas Motsoahe Thabane," read a motion filed by Motebang Koma, of ABC, and seconded by the Deputy Leader of the Democratic Congress, Motlalentoa Letsosa.

Parliament was adjourned on Monday without setting a date to sit again.

Although the motion does not indicate the reasons for wanting to release Thabane, some party members turned to the local media to report that the 80-year-old prime minister was ceding political power to his young wife, Maesaiah Thabane. .

Even ardent supporters of Thabané, such as Thaba-Bosiu chief Khoabane Theko, supported calls for his removal.

"He let his wife usurp control of the party and the government," Theko told The Times.

"What they must do is summon a special conference and decide that Ntate Thabane should step down and he wants to play God with this government through his wife." Ntate means Sir in Lesotho.

The dispute comes two years after Lipolelo, his 58-year-old ex-wife, was shot dead just two days before his inauguration.

He and Lipolelo were involved in a bitter divorce dispute.

She won a lawsuit against Thabane during her first stint as prime minister, claiming that she was the first lady of Lesotho instead of Thabane's youngest wife. Polygamy is legal in Lesotho.

Recognized as the African Switzerland for its mountainous landscapes, Lesotho has a long history of political instability and suffered coups in 1986 and 1991.

The ABC party has also been affected by an internal dispute over the appointment of a new party vice president.

A pro-Thabane faction has fiercely defended the chief.

Defense Minister Tefo Mapesela told parliament this week that Thabane intended to call new elections when the parliament resumes.

Thabane, whose coalition took office in 2017, was formerly prime minister after the 2012 elections, but was forced to flee to South Africa – which completely surrounds Lesotho – after a two-state coup attempt years later.