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doing a fantastic job,” said Bingo. He said Sihlongonyane was a publisher and that as one, he also had these problems.

Bingo then said while Sihlongonyane was a media personnel, he should also be treated as such when he arrived alone to pay tax.

As Bingo was speaking, Sihlongonyane interjected and jestingly asked him why he had excluded Bheki Makhubu, of The Nation Magazine.

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‘Bingo’ continued stating he was aware that ERS had written down rules.

However, he said maybe ERS needed to look at customising certain policies for the media industry.

He said without which they may find themselves digging deeper into their pockets to be compliant.

While at it, the Editors’ Forum,

who is also the Managing Editor (ME) for Eswatini Observer, asked for weekend to Pigg’s Peak.

He said this would be an opportunity for ERS with media personal, including those journalists who write about tax.

Earlier, Sihlongonyane had also asked about why some parliamentary candidates were disqualified for owing tax while others were allowed to proceed.

However, the Commissioner General Nkambule said the standard was the same for everyone and that when vetting candidates, everybody was treated the same.

He said in the particular instance which Sihlongonyane was referring to, one was found had already been elected.

He said the person owed taxes after he had been elected.

The commissioner general also urged that members of the public were free to check if they owed taxes by using the available services.

“It is like how you do with your bank accounts, you check them whether there is money or not,” said Nkambule. He said one should check if they were compliant.

Nkambule also thanked the media for the role they played. He said it was the media that was like a bridge between ERS and the clients.

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He assured that ERS would continue to engage the media and said they would challenge themselves to come up with a programme to educate media personnel.

He said the media would again be invited similar session in June 2023. Nkambule finally reminded media personnel that ‘tax is a price we pay for a civilised society’.