Why we hate the Mobile Court

This past week I noticed that a few of my friends who have legal knowledge had different opinions regarding the legality of the mobile court. I am not going to make a legal argument here but I am certainly going to challenge those that hate the mobile court. If the transport industry was able to stage a successful stayaway it means the industry hates the mobile court that it forced them to suspend their daily income. On the second day of the stayaway I received a call from a friend of mine, Nthoalo, who was shocked that the government had agreed to suspend the Mobile Court. It will interest you to know that Nthoalo has already paid M500 at the Mobile Court for an offence he committed and he said “I am a victim of the same but ultimately I want to live in a lawful country.” The government was forced to suspend the Mobile Court operations. It would appear that the government was held hostage. Evil won against the good, lawlessness against law and order. Thugs won against good people. Indeed, corruption won. This past week our people made it very clear that they hate the rule of law, they despise law and order. It is crystal clear that they enjoy lawlessness and anarchy. In fact, our people prosper in the law of the jungle. The Mobile Court is probably neck and neck against Covid-19 restrictions, vying for ‘‘the most hated thing in Lesotho” spot. Moreover, I don’t think there is anything Basotho evade more than the Mobile Court which is popularly known as the IVECO. The hatred towards this innovation that tries drivers for not meeting standards of roadworthiness on the spot in an IVECO that moves around solely in a bid to find vehicles that do not meet desired standards. The hatred towards the IVECO is because it acts as an inhibitor to lawlessness and the disregard drivers have for the law. Basotho have become comfortable not observing the standards they ought to keep to be on the road and the IVECO has become an intolerant force against old norms and bad habits on the road, and this frustrates many drivers. I myself have questioned the timing of the mobile court and its implications on people’s livelihoods, especially at this time that people are facing financial challenges as a result of Covid-19. In addition, I have asked whether it was not a breeding ground for Covid-19. However, on the positive side the IVECO has been effective in uprooting the corruption and lawlessness prevalent on our roads. Basotho have become comfortable with paying traffic officers M30-M50 to allow them to roam around our roads with insufficient paperwork and cars that are not roadworthy and do not meet the standard. Hence, there is so much fury against as the IVECO because fines far exceed the bribes Basotho are accustomed to that enable them to keep contravening the laws of the road. The bribe people give traffic officers to escape the consequences of the transgressions on the road is referred to as “trinki”, a Sesotho loanword from the English “cold drink”. People give traffic officers “trinki” to escape the much heftier fines they would otherwise get if they were sent to court. Thus, for purposes of convenience and to save themselves money, drivers would rather pay “trinki’’, and this is an exchange that has become such a norm that it is at times given openly. The practice of giving “trinki” has become institutionalised to the extent that I can bet that there is no adult taxi passenger that has never witnessed this exchange and in the event that the recipient of the bribe is a coy one, and tries to conceal this transaction, the exchange would still be apparent as it is well known that the only way a driver can escape the grip of a traffic officer is by giving “trinki”. What is most disturbing about bribes given to traffic officers is that they are amounts so measly that people do not mind paying them every time they are caught rather than sorting out whatever problem makes your car be considered not roadworthy. For example, rather than replacing a cracked windscreen for hundreds of maloti, a driver can decide to pay M30 every time they meet a hungry traffic cop instead of fixing the problem. To show their distaste for the IVECO, the taxi industry went on strike. It is worth noting that this was a very successful strike. This past week for two days taxi owners parked their vehicles, for two days our roads as well as all our taxi ranks were and taxi commuters were left with no other alternative but to walk or seek alternative options in order to get around. The irony is that some of our biggest taxi owners are high ranking members in the LMPS, LDF, NSS and LCS. This beckons the question whether such officers also support non-compliance of the law. As the successful strike was just a depiction of how much of a lawless society we are, as this strike showed blatant opposition to compliance and the promotion of anarchy. It only proved that we are a people that thrive on lawlessness and any attempt to shift us from this state, is faced with resistance. This just goes to show how non-compliance is deeply entrenched in our society. It goes beyond multinational companies that don’t pay their dues and the corrupt politicians we often lash out at but can never keep a lid on. Non-compliance is in us and it is a shame when those entrusted to enforce compliance are also part of the problem. The Mobile Court was attempting to bring a semblance of law and order. However, instead of embracing this Basotho have consistently played a game of cat and mouse with this institution, since it began its operations. For the first time we saw Basotho stand together to fight the taxi industry and private car owners alike stood in camaraderie to fight an attempt to preserve some order on our roads. As there was a series of stayaways in some districts, namely Mohale’s Hoek, Mafeteng, Quthing and Qacha’s Nek, even before the nationwide strike. When the IVECO visited the aforementioned towns, they were met with no cars, as both public transport and personal motor vehicles were parked until the IVECO went back to Maseru, having done little or no work in these particular districts. A key criticism against the implementation of the Mobile Court is that the initiative failed to educate the citizens on its operations. The events over the past few weeks force me to strongly agree with this assertion, as a result of the strong stance Basotho took against this endeavor. It shows me that we ought to be schooled to be akin with the rule of law and a civic education that is necessary to uproot the shameless disregard of the law we have as a society. One wonders whether Operation Restore Hope, an effort proposed to counter the increasing criminal activity in our country, will be met with the same resistance as the IVECO. The reason I am boggled by this is that the IVECO has made me realise that we pride ourselves with the notion that we are a peaceful nation. However, there are problematic traits we have as a nation that are becoming apparent by the day. We are also a people that is resistant to compliance and accountability. This is something we ought to acknowledge and change as a society, for the continuity of our country. Ramahooana matlosa