Poverty-ridden Swaziland’s king buys private jet
70% of subjects live below international poverty line
King Mswati of Swaziland has obtained a multimilliondollar private jet despite the majority of his countrymen living in abject poverty.
The twin-engined Mcdonnell Douglas DC-9 was reportedly given to the Sherbourne-educated king by “development partners and friends” as a present for his 44th birthday.
Swazi opposition groups say the king has owned the jet for some time but has been claiming to have chartered it.
They say the jet was worth as much as $48 million but more conservative estimates put the cost at up to $4 million.
They questioned how the king can justify such spending when seven in 10 of his 1,186,000 subjects live be- low the international poverty line of $1 a day, and a financial crisis in the landlocked country has led to AIDS orphans going without medication and teachers working unpaid.
King Mswati III has ruled Swaziland, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, since taking over from his father in 1986.
He celebrated his birthday this month with a $381,500 party to which locals were encouraged to donate their own cattle for a feast. With 13 wives and an estimated fortune of $100 million, he is notorious for his love of luxury.
Swazi critics have questioned who the “development” partners might be and the reasons for their generosity. Qatar and Kuwait are known to have close ties with the kingdom and are thought to have helped finance the construction of a $477-million international airport outside the capital.
Lucky Lukhele, a spokesman for the South Africa-based Swaziland Solidarity Network, said: “The cost to taxpayers’ money on the fuel expenses alone is enough to feed an average Swazi family for at least the rest of the year. “