THE late Lesotho Ambassador to Canada, Ralechate Lincoln ’Mokose was laid to rest in his home village of Kolonyama, Leribe on Friday.
news
Sept. 25, 2020
STAFF REPORTER
3 min read
'Mokose laid to rest in Kolonyama
The late Lesotho Ambassador to Canada Ralechate 'Mokose
Mr ’Mokose died on September 13 in the Canadian capital Ottawa after a short illness.
Some of the mourners who attended his state funeral included the two former Prime Ministers Pakalitha Mosisili and Motsoahae Thabane, cabinet ministers, senior government officials, politicians and people from all walks of life.
His Majesty King Letsie III was one of the speakers at the funeral service.
In his message of condolences, the King urged the 'Mokose's family and Basotho to thank God for giving them such a humble servant who was dedicated to serving his country.
Sharing similar sentiments, Prime Minister Dr Moeketsi Majoro hailed Mr ’Mokose as a disciplined and highly experienced diplomat and politician.
“Ntate 'Mokose was a soldier, who died in the line of duty,” Dr Majoro also said.
For her part, the Minister of Foreign Affairs ’Matšepo Ramakoae described the late ambassador as a patriot who served Lesotho with great passion.
She applauded the efforts of personnel from her ministry in ensuring that Mr ’Mokose’s remains were repatriated to Lesotho despite challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic as Canada is still in total lockdown.
The Principal Chief of Tsikoane, Peka and Kolobere, Pontšo Seoehla Mathealira said Mr 'Mokose’s passing is a great loss to the community of Kolonyama.
She said he was a man of great character and honour who had a lot of talents.
Mr 'Mokose was born in Kolonyama, on February 24, 1949. He trained as a teacher at the Morija Training College in 1974.
In 1980, he acquired a concurrent certificate in education from the National University of Lesotho (NUL) before graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) Degree in English at the same university in 1981.
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From September 1982 to December 1985 he was in political exile in eSwatini. Upon his return to Lesotho, he worked as a teacher at various schools including Leribe and Cana High School. He then joined the Ministry of Education as Chief Inspector from 1992 until 1994.
He served as the Lesotho High Commissioner to South Africa from 1994 until August 1999.
He was later that year transferred to serve in Denmark and other Nordic countries as ambassador.
He also served as Lesotho Ambassador to Poland and the Russian Federation until 2001 when he returned back home. Upon his return to Lesotho he joined politics and became a Deputy Speaker of Parliament and a Cabinet Minister.
Between 2003 and 2016, he served in various portfolios including the Ministries of Forestry and Land Reclamation, Agriculture and Food Security as well as Water Affairs.
In 2016 he defected from the Democratic Congress (DC) under Dr Mosisili to form the Alliance of Democrats (AD) with former Deputy Prime Minister Monyane Moleleki.
He was reappointed High Commissioner to South Africa in 2017 before his posting to Canada in 2019.
Mr ’Mokose is survived by his wife, two sons, a daughter and two grandchildren.
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