Emdlebeni Umphakatsi challenges EBC
MBABANE – Emdlebeni Umphakatsi is challenging the EBC’s decision of placing KaGasa under KaLiba Chiefdom for purposes of elections.
The applicant (Emdlebeni Umphakatsi) also wants the court to interdict the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), from making publications on Government Gazette redefining the boundaries of both the KuMethula and Hosea Inkhundla pending finalisation of this application.
It is further the applicant’s plea to the court that it should direct that the KaGasa Sigodzi Electorate continue to be under the KuMethula Inkhundla, not in conjunction with the Entabeni Electorate, who are under Hosea Inkhundla.
The Emdlebeni Umphakatsi is further praying for an order declaring that the decision of EBC to combine KaGasa with Entabeni/Esikhaleni for purposes of General elections and for electing bucopho benkhundla as ultra vires the powers of first respondent in terms of Sections 91 and 92 of the national Constitution No. 1 of 2005 read with Section 5 of the Elections Order No. 10 of 2013.
Other respondents in the matter are Chief
Mlotjwa Dlamini, Indvuna Gengefane Mabuza, Budze abuphangwa Royal Kraal, national commissioner of police and the attorney general (AG).
The applicant also implored the High Court to declare EBC’s decision of combining KaGasa with Entabeni and Esikhehleni for purposes of general elections and for electing bucopho benkhundla as irrational, unreasonable and grossly incorrect having allegedly been motivated by irrelevant political considerations.
According to the applicant, there was never any prior consultative hearing before the decision was made. Lastly, the applicant is praying for an order declaring that the dispute between it and Chief Mlotjwa Dlamini of KaLiba over the rightful chief over the KaGasa has not yet been finalised and pending before the Ludzidzini Council.
In his founding affidavit, Mafonto Msibi, who is the first applicant in the matter informed the court that he was the son of the late Umnumzane for the KaGasa Chiefdom. He submitted that the purpose of the application was twofold.
Msibi highlighted that firstly, he intended to secure an interdict against the first respondent (EBC) from allegedly making unilateral changes on the borders of KuMethula
Inkhundla by adding a new area which was not part of it before being the Entabeni/Esikhehleni Tigodzi which were all under the Hosea Inkhundla.
He brought it to the attention of the court that these areas had been added onto the Methula Inkhundla, purportedly without consulting the electorate involved
“The manner in which these areas have been removed from Hosea Inkhundla onto the KuMethula Inkhundla is not in accordance with Sections 91 and 92 of the National Constitution read with section 4 and 5 of the Elections Act of year 2005 and also with Elections and Boundaries CommissionAct No. 3 of 2013,” he argued.
Powers
He submitted that the application was for the judicial review of the exercise of powers vested in the EBC by the Sections 91 and 92 of the national Constitution. Msibi argued that these powers had allegedly not been lawfully exercised by the EBC.
These are allegations whose veracity is still to be tested in court.
“EBC took into account irrelevant and incorrect consideration in arriving at the decision to unite KaGasa and the other two Tigodzi under KaLiba as one for purposes elections. It is a known fact that the concept of bucopho is predicated on chiefdoms. Its idea was to give each chiefdom a permanent representative in the Tinkhundla federal type of Government. Thus the decision has far reaching consequences because EBC has taken it upon himself to ‘unite’ what he considered in his private view – one chiefdom of KaLiba,” he argued
The alleged irregularity according to Msibi was further compounded by the fact that EBC allegedly did not consult them on the propriety and correctness of the assertion that they shared a chief with the people of Esikhehleni and Entabeni.
“This flies in the face of Section 21 of the national Constitution which requires that before we are deprived of our bucopho
slot we be heard first. I am not referring to a mere fact finding mission but also prior consultation before we are deprived the monopoly over the bucopho slot we have always had with the,” contended the applicants. He argued that the people of KaGasa ought to have been consulted in advance not to be just informed about EBC’s unilateral decision not involving them. The mater is still pending in court and appearing for the applicants is Khumbulani Msibi of Dlamini- Kunene Associated in Manzini. The respondents are yet to file their papers.