… PS snubs DPS, leaves director in charge
The Principal Secretary of Environment and Forestry, ’Maphakamile Xingwana, is once again at the centre of controversy after issuing conflicting communications about her absence from office, one to the Government Secretary (GS) and another to her own ministry, leaving senior officials, including her minister, confused.
In a letter dated August 21, 2025, Xingwana formally requested permission from GS Teboho ’Mokela to be out of the country from September 8 to 10 to attend the Second Africa Climate Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
She said her deputy, Apesi Ratšele, would act in her position.
“The government of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia, in collaboration with the African Union Commission, will host the second Africa Climate Summit from the 8th to the 10th September 2025 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, under the theme ‘Accelerating Global Climate Solutions and Financing for Africa’s Resilience and Green Development’.”
She explained that the Summit is designed to tackle Africa’s pressing climate challenges and to adopt a unified African declaration ahead of the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30), scheduled for November 2025 in Belém, Brazil.
“The following officers form part of the delegation for Lesotho to attend the above-mentioned Summit. Their cost of travel and daily subsistence allowance for the delegation will be partially covered by the government, while the rest is being externally sourced.
“Therefore, authority to attend the above-mentioned Summit is requested. Please be informed that the Deputy Principal Secretary, Mr. Apesi Ratšele will be acting in my office while I will be out of the office on official duties,” she said.
She added that Lesotho’s delegation would include herself, Dr Teke Ramotubei (Director of Lesotho Meteorological Services), Mokoena France (Principal Meteorologist), and ’Marealeboha Boutu (Meteorologist).
The letter, endorsed by Minister Letsema Adontši on August 25 and approved by the GS on August 27, clearly indicated a three-day absence.
But just two days later, on August 29, Xingwana circulated an internal memo to ministry directors and heads of departments, informing them she would be away on “other official duties” from September 1 to 12, and that, instead of Ratšele, her office would be overseen by Nkuebe Lerotholi, Director of Soil and Water.
“Please note that I will be on other official duties from 1st to 12th September 2025. Director Soil and Water, Mr. Nkuebe Lerotholi, will therefore perform duties to the Office of the Principal Secretary. Your usual advanced cooperation and support is noted.”
The contradictory correspondence has sown confusion in the ministry. Senior officials told Newsday the minister himself was left in the dark.
’Mokela told Newsday yesterday that she was not aware of the PS’s internal communication to ministry officials, explaining that such interoffice memos are not ordinarily shared with her office.
She said she only deals with correspondence directly exchanged between herself and PSs, but stressed that even those remain internal government communications she could not publicly comment on.
Pressed on whether she knew the PS’s whereabouts, ’Mokela offered only: “She is performing public duties.”
The contradictory correspondence has sown confusion in the ministry. Senior officials told Newsday the minister himself was left in the dark.
‘Mokela told Newsday yesterday that she was not aware of the PS’s communication to the ministry’s officials, indicating that it was an interoffice communication which, under normal circumstances, she cannot be privy to.
She indicated that she was aware of the communications from PSs to herself and from herself to the PSs but emphasised that even such was internal government communication which she cannot comment on publicly.
Asked specifically if she knew where the PS was, she said: “She is performing public duties.”
The controversy comes barely two months after Newsday reported that the ministry was “teetering on the brink of collapse” under what insiders described as a reign of terror by Xingwana.
Her leadership was characterised as “erratic, authoritarian, and unaccountable”, plunging one of the country’s most critical ministries into dysfunction and fear.
In a formal complaint to GS ’Mokela, senior officials, whose identities are known to Newsday, accused the PS of unilateral decision-making, blatant disregard for procedure, and intolerance for dissent. Morale, they said, had plummeted, and operations were near paralysis.
Among the most damning allegations was that Xingwana had hoarded four government vehicles for personal use, despite being entitled to only one. Sources said the National Assembly’s Portfolio Committee on Natural Resources, Tourism and Land Cluster was alerted to the abuse but failed to act.
“When the committee was first told about this, she had already taken three vehicles. It did not act. Now she has four vehicles all to herself,” one official said.
Committee chair Moeketsi Motšoane denied ignoring the complaints but admitted the ministry faced “many problems” requiring urgent resolution. “We are seized with these matters, and they will be resolved,” he told Newsday in July.
The seeds of the crisis date back to July 2024, when Minister Adontši himself wrote to both the GS and Prime Minister Ntsokoane Matekane, formally requesting Xingwana’s removal.
“I humbly request your office to change the PS I am working with now, Mrs. ’Maphakamile Xingwana,” Adontši wrote, citing her obstructionist behaviour, including barring directors from accessing his office without her permission.
“This leads to me not getting any feedback or necessary information on anything being done in the ministry,” he said. “The majority of staff complain about her making it hard for them to fulfil their tasks because she delays or at times does not authorise documents.”
More than a year later, the minister’s pleas have gone unheeded. Instead, the crisis has deepened, with Xingwana’s latest contradictory absence leaving the ministry rudderless and more divided.
Summary
- The Principal Secretary of Environment and Forestry, ‘Maphakamile Xingwana, is once again at the centre of controversy after issuing conflicting communications about her absence from office, one to the Government Secretary (GS) and another to her own ministry, leaving senior officials, including her minister, confused.
- “The government of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia, in collaboration with the African Union Commission, will host the second Africa Climate Summit from the 8th to the 10th September 2025 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, under the theme ‘Accelerating Global Climate Solutions and Financing for Africa’s Resilience and Green Development’.
- But just two days later, on August 29, Xingwana circulated an internal memo to ministry directors and heads of departments, informing them she would be away on “other official duties” from September 1 to 12, and that, instead of Ratšele, her office would be overseen by Nkuebe Lerotholi, Director of Soil and Water.
Ntsoaki Motaung is an award-winning health journalist from Lesotho, specializing in community health stories with a focus on sexual and reproductive health and rights, as well as HIV. She has contributed to platforms like “Be in the KNOW,” highlighting issues such as the exclusion of people with disabilities from HIV prevention efforts in Lesotho.
In addition to her journalism, Ntsoaki serves as the Country Coordinator for the Regional Media Action Plan Support Network (REMAPSEN). She is also a 2023 CPHIA Journalism Fellow.
