EWSC billing system old, robbing people MPs
LOBAMBA – The Eswatini Water Service Corporation (EWSC)’s billing system has been labelled ‘horrible’ and literally ‘robbing’ people.
In fact, Members of Parliament (MPs)are calling for the current billing system to be replaced by prepaid payment.
Lugongolweni MP Enos Magongo said at some point, the system would come up with ridiculous amounts due only because there was air in the pipe, pushing the circuit to assume it was water being utilised.
He wondered when the prepaid billing would be introduced to put an end to the current billing system.
He also mentioned why there was a basic charge and a water standard charge as that made people to pay for a service that had not been rendered.
Lobamba Lomdzala MP Marwick Khumalo said the company should shape up or give others a chance.
“The billing system is horrible and literally robbing people and it is becoming dysfunctional and outdated. Where is the prepaid payment?” he asked.
Meanwhile, the MPs put it to the minister to clarify why the discovered minerals were only prioritised in the Mbabane-Manzini corridor and other places overlooked.
A majority of the legislators submitted their dismay on the matter, stating that apart from the minerals, many other things were implemented first in the Hhohho-Manzini regions and Lubombo and Shiselweni were overlooked.
On the issue of the near elapsing contract between the Eswatini Electricity Company and the South Africa’s Eskom, Acting Minister of Natural Resources Jabulani Mabuza assured the legislators that negotiations to have the contract were positive.
This was after the MPs expressed appreciation that despite electricity issues in SA that put Eskom on the spotlight and even shook the SA presidency while highlighted by endless load-shedding, they were able to maintain their supply to the Kingdom of Eswatini without fail.
The minister also mentioned that Eswatini was not relaxed on this issue as it was also looking at other options to reach self sustainability in preparedness for the worst.
‘Review Constitution’
LOBAMBA – Manzini North MP Macford Sibandze called for the review of the supreme law of the country.
Sibandze said the Constitution came into existence at least 17 years ago and it needed to be contextualised and be relevant. He made an example that in countries such as India, the Constitution has been reviewed for at least 105 times since its inception while in the US, it has been reviewed at least 27 times. He also supported his call by mentioning that there were new words that were now a big part of the people’s existence such as ‘digital technology’, which were not there 17 years ago and they needed to be inducted into the supreme law of the country.
“The Constitution should also speak to the other generations that were not there 17 years ago because they will distance themselves from the law, with the excuse that it wasn’t speaking to them,” he said.
Sibandze made his submissions during the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs portfolio committee second quarter performance report for the year 2022/2023.
Someone abusing power - MP
LOBAMBA – Kukhanyeni MP Malavi Sihlongonyane made it known to his colleagues and the entire team from the Ministry of Justice that someone was abusing power at the Master’s Office. Sihlongonyane said as much as problems and delays in solving issues were mainly caused by family conflicts or disputes, but the office itself was contributing to that. He said there was a motion in Parliament to have the office’s operations probed but the Chief Justice CJ), Bheki Maphalala, opposed that. “People with power abuse that power to stop things from happening. I want to believe that the CJ was once a lawyer who, I assume, also dealt with family conflicts on estates and why now is he stopping the probe into the operations of the office? Is it not because he fears he might be exposed when the probe uncovers the rot in that office?” he asked. In the same breath, the MP also spoke about vast corruption in the country whose perpetrators were not brought to book due to the dysfunctional Anti-Corruption Commission and MPs wanted specific timelines from the minister on the coalition of the latter with the Human Rights Commission.