3 August 2026 by Pascalinah Kabi

Lesotho’s only referral hospital, Queen ‘Mamohato Memorial Hospital (QMMH), owes suppliers M150,074,277.

The debt was disclosed when QMMH management, accompanied by Minister of Health ‘Mamokete Ntšekhe and senior officials from the Ministry of Health, appeared before Parliament’s Social Cluster Portfolio Committee on 31 July 2026.

A debt compilation report seen by Uncensored News shows that the pharmacy department accounts for the largest share of the outstanding amount of M52,977,660 to medicine suppliers Integrated Health Solutions and the National Drug Service Organisation (NDSO).

Interestingly, it is the hospital’s debt to the National Drug Service Organisation (NDSO) that opened the door to the revelation that QMMH owes suppliers a total of M150,074,277. Members of the Social Cluster Portfolio Committee expressed shock, saying they had previously known only about the debts owed to the NDSO.

Committee chairperson Mokhothu Makhalanyane told the meeting that members first learned about the NDSO debt while touring health facilities across the country to assess service delivery within ministries under the committee’s oversight.

“When we left Mohale’s Hoek, we visited the NDSO because of issues that had come to our attention. We then discovered that QMMH owes NDSO M34 million,” Makhalanyane said.

He warned that unpaid debts for medicines have far-reaching consequences for healthcare delivery across the country.

“Denying a service provider such a huge amount of revenue is simply killing their business,” Makhalanyane said. “It is surprising that QMMH continues to owe the NDSO while it has funds available for its day-to-day operations.”

NDSO debt relates to past financial year

QMMH Managing Director, Dr ‘Makhoase Ranyali, told the committee that the M34 million debt was accumulated during the 2025/26 financial year.

“We were instructed to put invoices in order and submit them to the Ministry of Health’s finance department for processing. As you have explained honourable member (Makhalanyane), funds are available, ministry responsible for such payment,” Dr Ranyali told the committee.

She indicated that there was a challenge of quotations bearing the 2025 dates which clash with those that appear on the invoice dates which some carry the 2026 date stamps. That has raised quiries with the Ministry of Health.

Meanwhile, QMMH Pharmacy Manager, Selialia Kori, told the committee he refused to backdate the invoices because he did not understand the instruction. 

“I felt that backdating the invoices would put me in serious troubles. I then advised that we start everything from scratch, delete the current invoices to ensure that there are no double payments for the same invoices,” Kori said.

He explained that the invoices remain in possession of the hospital’s finance department. On her part, Ministry of Health Finance Director, ‘Mamocheko Letsepe, told the Ministry cannot pay the NDSO because the QMMH has failed to provide correct documents.

How much does QMMH owe?

During the 31 July 2026 sitting, two ambulance service providers to Queen QMMH attended the meeting. Makhalanyane told the meeting that the two men had approached the committee over the hospital’s failure to pay them.

According to the debt compilation report, liabilities under the hospital’s Clinical Department amount to M20,204,631, making it the third-largest departmental debt after the Pharmacy Department (M52,977,660) and the Biomedical Department (M21,044,128).

Letsepe promised that the ambulance services debt would be processed, saying “these gentlemen may start seeing payment reflecting in their bank accounts on Monday (3 August 2026).”

The meeting took another turn when Makhalanyane asked Dr Ranyali whether the hospital had any additional outstanding debts.

“There are many, Honourable,” Dr Ranyali replied, explaining that she was not in a position to immediately provide the total amount.

Health Minister ‘Mamokete Ntšekhe then disclosed that QMMH’s total supplier debt stood at M150 million, drawing audible shock from committee members. Makhalanyane appeared even more surprised when it emerged that the debt included unpaid invoices for basic food items such as bread supplied by Blue Ribbon.

The debt compilation report shows that the hospital owes catering suppliers a total of M671,847. The outstanding amount includes trays of eggs (M34,125), meat (M248,217.73), bread (M38,038), groceries (M250,631.40), and fruits and vegetables (M100,835).

M2,000 debt amid M30,000 unaccounted petty cash

According to the debt compilation sheet, the hospital’s smallest outstanding debt is M2,000 owed to Molieleng Security Services, a security company whose registration records show 100 percent local ownership. Another M2,319 is owed to Maseru Toyota for the replacement of brake pads.

The hospital also owes M4,025 for clearing a mammogram machine at the border gate and M3,009 for lift services. Combined, these four debts amount to M11,353.

The relatively small value of these unpaid invoices stands in contrast to the M30,000 monthly petty cash that QMMH Finance Manager Tšele Sehlabo struggled to account for when hospital management appeared before the Public Accounts Committee on 29 July 2026. The M11,353 owed to four suppliers is less than half of the monthly petty cash that could not be fully explained during the hearing.

Sehlabo could account for only M3,400 of the M30,000. Public Accounts Committee chairperson ‘Machabana Lemphane-Letsie accused him of using the petty cash to pay for his studies, purchase gas and buy lunches for personal use.

Meanwhile, the hospital’s Human Resources Department has accumulated outstanding liabilities amounting to M7,924,201. Among others, the debt includes M5,845,563 owed to the LNIG Provident Fund and M1,698,284 in employees’ gratuities and severance pay.