‡–ǯ• …ƒŽŽ ˆ‘” ’‡ƒ…‡ˆ—Ž ”‡•‘Ž˜‡ ‘ˆ …‘—–”›ǯ• ’”‘„Ž‡•

/

(7 us think around the state of our country as the problems that exploded in -uly -uly , continue to haunt us. %efore delving on this subject, let me reflect on the recent 0angololo split where two members of this organisation were suspended hardly a year after it was formed.

7his split is not surprising as 0angololo and all those behind its agenda is based on truth and reality on the ground especially with regard to socio-economic and governance challenges negatively impacting emaSwati.

:hile there is nothing wrong in supporting government, , would argue that such support must be principled and backed by evidence that government is delivering services, respect separation of powers, protect human rights just to mention a few.

/et us now address the issue for the day. ,t is indeed concerning that the future of our country hangs in the balance. Sadly, it is the young generation and children who are the future of this great nation that bear the full brunt of this uncertainty. 7hose who have gone before us, left us a country that we were proud of. ,n fact, (swatini was able to survive colonialism. 7o this end we gained our independence in , without any loss of life. :e attribute this to the generation of leaders who pursued change peacefully in spite of the challenges they encountered.

7his is the foundation and legacy that our forebears and bequeath on this generation.

Situation

8nfortunately, since the -une -uly unrest, the situation continues to deteriorate. 7he rhetoric from the leadership and those who seek change has not been encouraging, especially the threats and inflammatory statements. 7his makes the ordinary liSwati to wonder where the country is going.

7he journey to change is inevitable. ,t is a matter of time when change will happen and how it will be facilitated.

0y plea is that change for (swatini should be managed and must be an all-inclusive process so that we find lasting solutions to our problems peacefully.

:e should recall that the year , was an important year in the development of the country as it¶s the year in which we should have realised vision

that was launched in after a painstaking all-inclusive process. :e all know that the country failed to realise this vision.

8nfortunately, in we had civil unrest that served to underline the faulty lines in our development agenda as a nation.

,n fact, strategic processes help institution to reposition themselves based on appreciation of their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats as well as being informed about external environment through a process strategic planners refer to as P(S7(/ ± where the political, economic, social, technology, environment and legal issues are unpacked to shape strategic positioning.

7he country unfortunately found itself in a crisis which was in line with the worst case scenario that was part of the original 1'S version document.

8nfortunately, government decided to delete the scenarios from the document yet these were an important point of reference. (swatini will never be peaceful as long as dialogue to redefine the country¶s strategic focus is avoided.

,t is even not clear why we have such a difficulty as we have always heard from the government and authorities that dialogue is part of (swatini way of life.

peaceful change. 7he situation on the ground should serve as a grim reminder that we need to pursue change for the sake of the future generation. 7here are per cent of our young people trapped in unemployment, the healthcare system is in deep crisis with constant shortages of drugs, tertiary institutions are struggling to access funding, government is further cutting scholarships, some emaSwati are facing food insecurity, gender-based violence that has reached endemic levels, there is limited access to justice, mental health challenges are leading to an increasing number of suicides to mention but a few. Silence, denial, rejection of dialogue and indifference will not help the country.

Change

5egarding the role that every liSwati should play, the former $merican President -ohn ) .ennedy once said “$sk not what your country will do for you - ask what you can do for your country´.

7he change we want is not a preserve of a few but it is a call for all of us to make a contribution. ,n this regard, we need to continue to advocate for peaceful change because without this our country¶s development gains will be stagnant and ultimately reversed. )ormer President of $merica %arack 2bama was right that µ&hange will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. :e are the change that we seek¶. Peaceful change is still possible.