Lesotho: Dr Ntsu Mokhehle

Updated 2002

Born on 26 December 1918 in Teyateyaneng, Lesotho, Ntsu Mokhehle founded the Basutoland Congress Party (BCP) in 1952.

The victory of the Basutoland National Party (BNP) at national elections in 1966 relegated Mokhehle and the BCP to the opposition. Following the annulment of the first post-independence elections in 1970, which were won by the BCP, Mokhehle organised an attempted coup in 1974, which failed leaving the party in disarray.

From his exile in South Africa, Mokhehle continued pressuring the government to reinstate democracy, whilst concurrently heading a military offensive. The democratic transition taking place in South Africa in the early 1990s set the background for the return of Ntsu Mokhehle from exile. After the landslide victory of the BCP in the general elections on 27 March 1993, Mokhehle was nominated Prime Minister.

Soon after attaining power the BCP entered a period of profound internal strife. In June 1997, Mokhehle resigned from the BCP following disagreements within the party over his leadership. While he lost control over the party machinery he maintained the loyalty of the majority of its members of parliament. In light of this crisis Mokhehle split the party and founded the Lesotho Congress for Democracy (LCD), which assumed government.

After the ruling party split in 1997 and the subsequent establishment of the new party doubts were raised as to whether the Prime Minister would definitely withdraw from the political scene after the 1998 elections, but Mokhehle retired as party leader in February 1998 leaving the direction of the newly formed LDC to Pakalitha Mosisili. He died on 6 January 1999, in Bloemfontein, South Africa.