Murder-accused officer appointed as Special Forces commander

The promotion of a senior South African National Defence Force officer has raised concerns about accountability and oversight.

Despite facing serious pending criminal charges, including murder, Brigadier General Solly Lechoenyo was recently appointed as the new commanding officer of the Special Forces unit.

RELATED: How did this happen? An officer facing murder charges promoted to lead Special Forces

Lechoenyo and six other soldiers were charged with planning and carrying out the murder of Hawks investigator Lieutenant Colonel Frans Mathipa.

Writer and scholar Jonny Steinberg said that while the Madlanga Commission’s interim report points to the need for crucial reform of the police service, he is sceptical about President Cyril Ramaphosa’s commitment to this process.

“[Rampahosa] is sending mixed signals. Perhaps nobody in the upper echelons of government thinks that Special Forces assassinating a foreign national is a big deal, and the detective who took the case too seriously got burnt, and life goes on?

“This promotion tells a grim story about the possibilities of police reform,” he said.

To listen to Steinberg in conversation with CapeTalk’s John Maythem, use the audio player below: