PM likely to represent Eswatini at emergency summit
MBABANE – The Prime Minister, Cleopas Sipho Dlamini, is the one most likely to represent Eswatini at the emergency summit of the security organ of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) scheduled for tomorrow in Windhoek, Namibia.
This was revealed by the Minister of ForeignAffairs and International Cooperation, Thuli Dladla, when asked by this reporter as to who will represent the country at the summit.
The question was posed following the assumptions that His Majesty King Mswati III was preparing for the Incwala Ceremony and as such, was likely to go into seclusion anytime soon.
Dladla stated that the summit was something government expected, more especially after the visit of the Chairperson of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, President of Namibia Hage Geingob, who was in the country rescently. The minister said the kingdom was looking forward to fruitful discussions.
In yesterday’s publication, the minister had confirmed that the kingdom had been invited and was on the agenda.
Dladla also confirmed that the country would participate in the meeting.
It was reported that during the summit, the political and security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Eswatini, Lesotho and Mozambique would be under the spotlight.
Multi-Stakeholders Forum (MSF) Chairperson Thulani Maseko expressed hope that SADC would be decisive in implementing the draft framework for inclusive national dialogue in Eswatini as presented to the King on February 14, 2021 by then Organ Chairperson, President of South Africa Cyril Ramaphosa.
Maseko was reacting to the announcement of the emergency summit of the security organ of SADC, scheduled for tomorrow.
He stated that a meeting of the SADC leadership to discuss issues affecting the people of the region was always seen in a positive light.
Maseko said the fact that the meeting would discuss the political and security situation in the region, and strengthening democratic processes and the rule of law, was quite on point.
Maseko added that the problem with
Eswatini was the absence of democratic processes and the rule of law.
He said the security situation in the region and in Eswatini in particular, could not be seen outside of the political context. The chairperson explained that the bad and poor politics of the Tinkhundla System of Government had given rise to the fragile security situation.
“Tinkhundla is an antithesis of all that the SADC region has committed to,” he said.
Maseko said as civil society groups, they were impressed by the SADC leadership that the security concerns could only be arrested by addressing the country’s political question.
He added that the road map was clear; all that was needed was political will.
“We call upon the SADC leadership to be decisive in ensuring that the King commits to the dialogue process as he himself did in Zimbabwe when he was chair of the organ, bringing the late Morgan Tsvangirai and Robert Mugabe to the table together with President Mbeki of South Africa,” he said.
He said the SADC leadership needed to realise the urgency of the matter.