By Mpho Sekonyela | Investigations Desk, The Sentinel
New information has surfaced suggesting that the upcoming transition in the Lesotho Defense Force (LDF) is not the clean handover the public has been led to believe.
According to internal sources and corroborated documents reviewed by The Sentinel, a quiet but deliberate effort is underway to block certain senior officers from ascending to the position of Commander despite their unblemished records and proven professional conduct.
Among those being politically isolated is a senior general who, unlike most in the LDF’s upper echelons, refused to carry out illegal orders during the 2014 bombings. His name appears in official court proceedings as one of the few officers who not only opposed the covert operation allegedly orchestrated by then-Commander Tlali Kamoli but later testified against it in a court of law.
He has not been accused of wrongdoing. He has not been investigated. He is not under disciplinary review.
So why is he being kept out?
A Choreographed Succession
Sources close to the Office of the Prime Minister, speaking on condition of anonymity, have confirmed what many feared: the military succession is being managed behind closed doors by individuals with vested interests.
A short list of “acceptable” candidates is already being circulated internally. Most names on that list are recent appointees individuals fast-tracked under Lt-Gen Letsoela’s command. While technically competent, their rise has been marked more by proximity to power than by standout leadership under pressure.
Multiple officers both retired and active have expressed concern over what one termed a “hollow coronation”, with the next commander likely chosen based on alignment, not merit.
“This is not a transition. This is an inheritance,” said one senior officer, who requested not to be named.
A Pattern of Quiet Sabotage
What’s more troubling is the strategic sidelining of officers with reputational capital.
Documents seen by The Sentinel show that at least one senior figure widely respected for his logistics command and known refusal to participate in political operations has been left out of internal consultations and briefings.
An internal memo dated April 2025 references “compliance posture alignment” in the selection of senior defense leadership vague language that sources interpret as a screen for political filtering.
“It’s clear who they want. And it’s clear who they don’t want,” one mid-level officer explained. “The person who did the right thing back then. He’s the one being locked out now. Why? Because his file is too clean.”
The Ghost of Kamoli
There is an uncomfortable truth embedded in the current atmosphere: the shadow of Kamoli still lingers, not through his direct influence, but through the structures that survived him.
Many of the officers who maintained their silence during the darkest periods of LDF history have since been rewarded. Those who chose the harder path those who reported up, testified, or resisted are now seen as unpredictable. A threat to the culture of quiet obedience that certain power brokers still rely on.
It is no secret that the officer who testified against Kamoli did not climb fast. He did not sit at media briefings. He did not push his own narrative. But his absence from current shortlists has nothing to do with qualifications and everything to do with fear.
“He would never allow another Kamoli. That’s why they won’t give him the seat,” one source said.
What This Means for Lesotho
The Lesotho Defense Force stands at the brink of either redemption or relapse.
A command structure built on secrecy, internal deals, and rotational favoritism cannot serve a country trying to rebuild its democratic institutions. The next commander will shape not just the tone of the military but the level of public trust in it.
If merit is pushed aside in favor of orchestrated succession, the message will be clear: the truth costs rank, and silence wins you stars.
Final Questions
Why is the one man who resisted unlawful orders being excluded from leadership discussions?
Why are those who stayed silent now being rewarded?
And most of all: what does it say about our future if doing the right thing becomes a disqualifier?
For The Sentinel, this is Mpho Sekonyela reporting from Maseru.
If you have information about internal processes in the LDF or whistleblower records, contact [email protected] anonymously.
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