…as escape route from M49m rent debt
Makananelo Manamolela
THE cash strapped Maseru City Council (MCC) is said to be considering a move to the Old Parliament Building in Maseru as it seeks an escape route from a crippling M49 million debt in rental arrears.
Sources told this publication that the government had identified the Old Parliament Building as a possible alternative home for MCC, in a move that could help the urban authority reduce its rental exposure. This as it has accumulated M49 million in rental arrears to its current landlord.
Still, the sources say MCC could face an even more severe financial penalty, exceeding its current arrears, if it vacates the Moonstar Complex before the expiry of its current lease.
“MCC is supposed to move to the Old Parliament Building as part of efforts to reduce the burden of renting offices, but the problem is that there is an existing lease agreement with Moonstar,” one source said.
Another source said the Council’s reported M49 million rental debt made the proposed relocation particularly urgent.
“The debt has become a serious burden for the Council. Moving into government-owned premises would help reduce the monthly rental costs, but there are contractual issues that need to be resolved before MCC can leave Moonstar,” the source said.
According to MCC financial records seen by this publication, the Council owed more than M49 million in rent as at the end of August 2026.
However, MCC public relations manager, Lintle Bless, denied reports that the Council was being prevented from vacating the Moonstar Complex because of the outstanding debt or its lease agreement.
Ms Bless said relocation had always been part of the Council’s plans and that MCC was currently engaged in discussions over alternative premises.
“The official statement is that we have not moved out because the relocation process is still underway; it has not yet been finalised. Therefore, it cannot make sense to say that we are being forced to stay,” Ms Bless said.
“We are still in negotiations regarding our movement. I cannot say exactly when we are moving out; I will have to check and verify when I am in the office.”
She said the Council also wanted to ensure that its existing lease arrangements were properly concluded before vacating the premises.
She said discussions were being held regarding the lease arrangements for whatever premises MCC eventually occupies.
Ms Bless was reluctant to confirm or deny that the Old Parliament Building was the intended alternative destination.
She also could not confirm the current value of the Council’s rental debt, saying payments had been made towards the outstanding amount.
“As of now, I cannot say we still owe that much. It might be lower or higher, even though we had been paying part of the money. The figures I cannot tell now; I will have to go and check how far we are with the debt,” she said.
The rental crisis comes against the backdrop of mounting concerns over MCC’s financial position and the cost of operating from rented premises.
A move to the government-owned facilities has been viewed as one possible way of reducing the council’s operational expenditure and freeing resources for service delivery.
However, any relocation would require MCC to conclude its existing contractual arrangements and secure suitable alternative accommodation.
The Council’s rental problems came into sharp focus in February 2026, when it was locked out of its offices by the landlord over unpaid rent dating back to 2016.
Council officials were denied access to the premises, disrupting operations. At the time, MCC owed over M55 million
The offices were reopened two days later after the Council appealed for more time and committed to negotiating a payment plan.
The Moonstar Complex supervisor, who declined to disclose his identity, refused to comment on the latest developments when contacted by this publication.
“I cannot provide any information on this matter,” the supervisor said.
The latest controversy comes amid a string of financial woes at the Council.
Sometime last year, MCC made headlines for failing to account for more than M200 million over a six-year period.
According to Auditor-General ‘Mathabo Makenete, the Council’s financial statements for the 2017–2022 financial years were riddled with inconsistencies, omissions and missing documentation, leading her to issue six consecutive disclaimer opinions — the most severe form of audit opinion.
A disclaimer opinion indicates that an entity’s financial records are so inadequate that auditors are unable to form an opinion on them.
The Council had gone for years without audits until Town Clerk ‘Moea Makhakhe submitted outstanding financial statements for the six-year period on 11 August 2025. This prompted Ms Makenete to commission CGT and Associates Chartered Accountants to conduct the long-overdue audits.
In a separate incident in September last year, the Revenue Services Lesotho (RSL) seized 17 MCC vehicles over a M67 million tax debt, comprising M13 million in Pay As You Earn (PAYE) liabilities and M54 million in penalties for failure to file and pay income tax. The vehicles were released in December after the Council paid M5 million towards the PAYE debt and undertook to settle the outstanding balance.
