Tšeliso Moroke
Parliamentary oversight must become the defining watershed of the 11th Parliament. The stakes are simply too high for it to remain ceremonial or timid. At a time when the country’s expectations for infrastructure development have reached unprecedented levels, the institutions responsible for oversight must rise to meet the moment.
Infrastructure is not a marginal issue in Lesotho’s development agenda. It is central to economic expansion, job creation, regional competitiveness, and the basic functioning of society. Roads, bridges, public buildings, housing projects, water systems, and energy infrastructure are the backbone upon which any modern economy rests. For a country that has long struggled with unemployment, spatial inequality, and slow economic growth, infrastructure development is widely seen as a pathway to renewal.
But infrastructure also carries a shadow. Around the world, large-scale public works have historically been fertile ground for corruption, patronage networks, inflated procurement, and opaque contracting arrangements. Lesotho is not immune to these risks.
What makes the current moment particularly delicate is the political and institutional configuration surrounding infrastructure development. Many of the key players in the sector — contractors, construction companies, suppliers, and investors — are closely connected to individuals who sit within the Cabinet and the National Executive Committee of the ruling party. This reality does not automatically imply wrongdoing. However, it undeniably creates the conditions for potential conflicts of interest.
When those tasked with governing the country are simultaneously embedded within the economic sectors most dependent on government contracts, the lines between public duty and private benefit can become dangerously blurred. Even the perception of such conflicts can erode public confidence in government decision-making.
This is why parliamentary oversight cannot be treated as a routine administrative exercise. It must become a serious institutional safeguard.
The 11th Parliament must recognise that oversight is not about embarrassing the executive or engaging in partisan battles. It is about protecting the integrity of the state and ensuring that public resources serve the public interest. Parliament must ask difficult questions about procurement processes, tender allocations, cost escalations, and project timelines. Committees must be empowered to interrogate ministries, summon officials, review contracts, and scrutinise expenditure with professional rigour.
Without this level of scrutiny, infrastructure development can easily become the arena where development ambitions collide with corruption risks.
This moment presents a profound paradox for the country: the tension between development and corruption. On the one hand, Lesotho urgently needs infrastructure investment. The country cannot industrialise, attract investors, or create jobs without modern transport networks, reliable energy systems, and functional urban planning. Delays in development carry real economic costs.
On the other hand, infrastructure spending typically involves large financial flows, emergency procurement decisions, and complex contracting arrangements. These conditions create fertile ground for illicit financial flows and financial leakages that weaken the state.
Across the world, governance institutions are struggling to keep pace with these evolving challenges. The complexity of illicit financial flows, the opacity of algorithms governance in procurement systems, and the sheer volume of crisis-related spending have outstripped the monitoring capacity of many traditional oversight bodies. What once could be tracked through straightforward auditing now requires specialised technical expertise, digital transparency tools, and coordinated institutional effort.
Lesotho’s governance system was not originally designed for this level of complexity. Parliamentary committees often operate with limited research capacity, insufficient technical advisors, and inadequate access to real-time financial data. Yet the scale of modern infrastructure investment requires exactly those capabilities.
This is why the 11th Parliament must transform oversight into a professional discipline rather than a political ritual. Members of Parliament must be supported by independent experts in finance, engineering, procurement law, and project management. Parliamentary committees should be equipped with the tools necessary to analyse contracts, evaluate project feasibility, and monitor expenditure patterns.
Transparency must also become the default setting of governance. Large infrastructure contracts should not exist in secrecy. The public must know who wins tenders, how much projects cost, what timelines are agreed upon, and what mechanisms exist for accountability when delays or cost overruns occur.
This is not about creating hostility between Parliament and the executive. It is about building a governance ecosystem that protects development from being captured by private interests.
If parliamentary oversight fails, the consequences will not simply be political embarrassment. They will be economic stagnation, wasted public funds, unfinished projects, and deepening public cynicism about politics itself.
But if oversight succeeds, the outcome could be transformative. Infrastructure development could become a genuine engine of economic inclusion rather than a vehicle for enrichment by a connected few.
The 11th Parliament therefore stands at a crossroads. It can either continue the familiar pattern where oversight exists in theory but rarely in practice, or it can establish a new tradition where Parliament actively safeguards the national interest.
How the country moves will depend on which path it chooses.
Summary
- At a time when the country’s expectations for infrastructure development have reached unprecedented levels, the institutions responsible for oversight must rise to meet the moment.
- Many of the key players in the sector — contractors, construction companies, suppliers, and investors — are closely connected to individuals who sit within the Cabinet and the National Executive Committee of the ruling party.
- The complexity of illicit financial flows, the opacity of algorithms governance in procurement systems, and the sheer volume of crisis-related spending have outstripped the monitoring capacity of many traditional oversight bodies.
Your Trusted Source for News and Insights in Lesotho!
At Newsday Media, we are passionate about delivering accurate, timely, and engaging news and multimedia content to our diverse audience. Founded with the vision of revolutionizing the media landscape in Lesotho, we have grown into a leading hybrid media company that blends traditional journalism with innovative digital platforms.
