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The main opposition Democratic Congress (DC) has accused the National Security Service (NSS) of threatening its youth league in the upcoming elections.
The D.C. Youth League elective meeting is scheduled to be held from tomorrow to Sunday at the Moshoeshoe II High School auditorium in Matsieng.
The task of this meeting is to elect a new National Youth Committee for Washington, D.C., in accordance with the party’s constitution.
The Youth League works closely with the National Executive Committee (NEC) and the Women’s League of the party.
DC Secretary General Tšitso Cheba toldlesotho timesThis week, NSA officials went to different constituency offices in Washington, D.C., to ask party officials there about the makeup of the youth delegates their constituencies will send to the convention.
According to Mr Cheba, the DC was scared because the information the NSA operatives wanted included the names of delegates selected for the conference, the time they would leave from their respective constituencies to Maseru and the registration numbers of the vehicles that would take them to the conference.
Cheba, who is the MP for Mahoroana Constituency in DC, said the actions of the NSA were not only unnecessary but also constituted a serious intimidation to the young cadres of the party who were “still learning to run the country”.
DC SG toldlesotho times Over the weekend, he received reports from two constituencies that NSA members were questioning them, trying to extract details about delegates and logistical arrangements. Mr. Cheba added that NSA operatives also wanted information about the identities of those who would provide funding for the conference.
thislesotho times connect NSS SpokespersonLimpho Gugushe, to determine whether the National Security Agency has the authority to demand such information from all political parties that hold meetings.
Ms. Gugushe could only say that she was not available to answer the phone right now. She had promised to call the reporter back but did not call back.
Further efforts to get her to comment failed as she now ignored calls.
This is in line with the conduct of the Acting Director General of the National Security Service, Lebohang Mafisa, who initially promised to give this publication an exclusive interview to answer questions about the paralysis of the National Security Service, which has prevented it from effectively combating rampant crime. We are still waiting for the promised interview, but it has yet to materialize.
Meanwhile, Mr. Cheba further told this newspaper that he had received reports from two Washington DC lawmakers on the matter this week.
“I received reports from three constituencies last weekend. Today (Monday), I received reports from two DC councillors letting me know that they have been informed by constituency officials that the National Security Service has interfered in our preparations for the National Youth Council electoral conference,” Mr Cheba said.
“According to the councillor, constituency officers are seeking advice on how to deal with NSS members who try to extract information.”
Mr Cheba, sounding annoyed, claimed the NSA had acted beyond its mandate.
He noted that the NSA’s role was to ensure national security and “provide intelligence to the prime minister’s office, not to spy on the main opposition….”
“The responsibilities of the National Security Agency include keeping a close eye on the national security situation and informing the Prime Minister’s Office and other departments of issues that may pose a danger to the country,” Mr Cheba said.
“Now they have abandoned their duty to monitor matters that could be dangerous to the country and are focusing on the DC. Our party constitution and IEC policies require us to renew our political structure regularly. The DC has done this by calling elections for the National Youth Council.
“Now, the government machinery is trying to stop our youths from fulfilling the party’s constitutional requirements. Why are they trying to find out the names of those who will attend the meeting? We want to know what interest the NSS has in this issue.”
Mr. Cheba also reiterated that the NSA’s surveillance practices posed a serious intimidation to young people in Washington, D.C., who were “learning about national political management.”
“It’s pure intimidation for our members. These kids are young, they’ve just come of age. They don’t have a lot of experience in this. So, the fact that the NSA wants to know their names is a serious threat,” he said.
“What interest does the NSS have in the D.C. Youth Suffrage Conference?” he asked.
He continued: “These are intimidation actions designed to keep us from doing business freely. If the NSA is investigating something or hears that something untoward may be going on there, they have to ask us publicly.”
Mr. Cheba said that in order to get to the bottom of the matter, they have tried to contact some of the National Security Agency personnel involved in the case.
“We contacted the NSA officer in one of the areas and he responded briefly. He said he was busy but confirmed that the NSA had the assignment. He said we would talk later as he took the call in an awkward situation,” he said.
“We are living in turbulent times with extremely high crime rates and when security agencies start asking people for their names, the vehicle they were travelling in and so on, it becomes a threat.
“These are very private details. For us, this is sensitive information, very private…”
Posts Washington DC accuses NSA of meddling First appeared in lesotho times.
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