The deepening chaos within the Ministry of Environment and Forestry has taken a fresh turn, now drawing in the National Assembly’s Portfolio Committee on Natural Resources, Tourism and Land Cluster, which stands accused of complacency and inaction.
Earlier this month, Newsday reported that the ministry was teetering on the brink of collapse under what insiders have described as a reign of terror by Principal Secretary (PS) ’Maphakamile Xingwana. Her leadership, characterised as erratic, authoritarian and unaccountable, is said to have transformed one of the country’s most critical ministries into a workplace gripped by fear, dysfunction, and inertia.
In a damning formal complaint addressed to Government Secretary (GS) Teboho ’Mokela, senior officials in the ministry, whose identities are known to Newsday, outlined a litany of grievances against Xingwana.
The complaints painted a disturbing picture of an institution held hostage by unilateral decision-making, a blatant disregard for procedure, and an aggressive intolerance for dissent. Morale, they said, is at an all-time low, and internal operations are near paralysis.
One of the most serious allegations against Xingwana is that she has hoarded government vehicles, keeping four for her personal use despite being entitled to only one. Sources within the ministry told Newsday that the portfolio committee was alerted to this specific abuse of resources but chose not 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 source said.
Committee chairperson Moeketsi Motšoane this week denied that his committee ignored the complaints, but acknowledged that the ministry is riddled with issues that demand urgent resolution.
“There are many problems in that ministry that need to be resolved once and for all,” Motšoane said. “For instance, we found that a former minister is now serving as a deputy PS. That means the current PS is the senior to someone who once held a higher office; that dynamic alone creates unnecessary tension.”
Motšoane assured Newsday that the committee was actively engaged in addressing the turmoil, saying: “We are seized with these matters, and they will be resolved.”
But the seeds of this crisis were planted long ago. In July 2024, Minister of Environment and Forestry Letsema Adontši formally wrote to both the GS and Prime Minister Ntsokoane Matekane, requesting Xingwana’s removal.
Adontši’s letter offered a blistering assessment of the PS’s performance and detailed the dysfunction he faced in trying to carry out his ministerial duties under her grip.
“I humbly requested your office to change the PS I am working with now, Mrs. ’Maphakamile Xingwana,” Adontši wrote. “There are plenty of reasons to which I have come to this decision.”
Among the grievances, the minister said Xingwana barred directors of departments from accessing his office without her permission, effectively cutting him off from key operations and information.
“This leads to me not getting any feedback or necessary information on anything that is being done in the Ministry,” he wrote. “Though I may not put a nail to it, the majority of staff complain about her making it hard for them to fulfil their tasks to their maximum capabilities because she delays or at times does not authorise documents.”
A year later, little has changed, and many fear things are deteriorating further.
When contacted by Newsday earlier this month, GS ’Mokela claimed the matter was being handled.
But for many, the situation feels like déjà vu. Just last year, then-Minister of Energy Professor Nqosa Mahao pleaded with Matekane to remove his PS, Tankiso Phapano, citing similar dysfunction.
Instead of removing Phapano, Matekane fired Mahao.
Since November 2024, Minister of Natural Resources Mohlomi Moleko has been acting in the energy portfolio, which still has no substantive minister. The ministry has been dogged by controversy as the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) probes the Lesotho Electricity Company (LEC) amid allegations of incompetence and corruption.
Phapano, who has faced sustained criticism, remains in office as PS. Matekane’s seemingly nonchalant stance has led sources within the Ministry of Environment to fear their own saga will end the same way – a minister fired, a PS protected, and a prime minister who appears indifferent.
Matekane’s silence on the matter, some say, speaks louder than words.
Authored by our expert team of writers and editors, with thorough research.
