The Southern African Development Community (SADC) will hold a Double Troika Summit to discuss the deteriorating situation in Lesotho, it was announced on Thursday.
South African President Jacob Zuma, in his capacity as Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defense and Security Cooperation, will host the summit in Pretoria on Friday, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) said.
The Double Troika Summit will receive reports from South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is also SADC Facilitator to Lesotho, and the SADC Ministerial Organ Troika fact- finding mission, which was urgently sent to Lesotho to assess recent the political and security developments in the kingdom, DIRCO spokesperson Clayson Monyela said.
The Double Troika is made up of Zimbabwe, South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Malawi and Lesotho.
The Summit of Heads of States will be preceded by a Double Troika ministerial and senior officials’ meeting.
The summit is called in response to the deteriorating situation in Lesotho following the death of Lieutenant General Maaparankoe Mahao, former commander of the Lesotho Defense Force.
Mahao was killed last week at his home town outside Maseru. It remains unknown who masterminded Mahao’s killing.
Lesotho’s Minister of Defense Tseliso Mokhosi has said Mahao’s death should not be politicized.
Mahao, an ally of Lesotho’s former leader Thomas Thabane, is a bitter rival of current army chief Tlali Kamoli.
Thabane lost the February elections to, Pakalitha Mosisili, the current prime minister.
Mahao’s death prompted Zuma to dispatch a SADC fact-finding mission last weekend to assess the situation in Lesotho.
On Tuesday, Ramaphosa also visited Lesotho to consult with Mosisili and other stakeholders on the situation in the kingdom.
Following his visit, Ramaphosa said on Wednesday that the SADC would assist with the investigation into the death of Mahao and the pathology examination around Mahao’s death at the request of Mosisili.
South Africa will be sending pathologists to do the examination and other countries in the region — Zimbabwe and Namibia — will be sending investigators to investigate the circumstances around Mahao’s death, according to Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa said he delivered a specific message to Mosisili, inviting him to the Double Troika Summit. Enditem
