Royalty must display its relevance
I Nan article published in the European CEO on May 1, 2020 with the headline ‘ A right royal argument: are monarchies still relevant?’ author Barclay Ballard outlined the difficulty of resolving the debate over whether countries should have an elected head of state or a monarch. He said looking at economic considerations to get to a resolution was useful, but still might not bridge this divide.
Ballard pointed out that one of the most contentious issues in the debate between royalists and republicans relates to the financial burden the public must bear in order to support the monarch and their family. This, he said, usually ran into many millions, with palaces, carriages and royal duties all costing huge sums. Of course, he went on, royalty brings in funds as well, particularly through tourism.
For the Kingdom of Eswatini, Ballard’s article holds much relevance, more so at the present moment when a lot of questions have been raised on the role of the monarch and the royal family. EmaSwati have always rallied behind the monarch and his family for the longest of time because they have always identified with this institution.
SYMBOL
The King and Ingwenyama, as per the Constitution of the Kingdom of Eswatini, is a symbol of unity and the eternity of the Swati nation. However, no one can dispute that there is a significant number of emaSwati who are currently angry with the royal household as they feel the institution of the monarch no longer reflects their aspirations. The evidence in this regard is there for anyone to see, especially as the anger is displayed every day on social media platforms. Avoiding this subject is now not an option.
The nation of Eswatini is experiencing sentiments of division because of this. It is clear that there is a strong feeling the royal family is not in touch with the majority of emaSwati. Members of the royal family have been seen flaunting an opulent lifestyle on social media, as if to show the middle finger to the hundreds of thousands of citizens who have been made to believe that the country does not have money.
This lifestyle has convinced many that there is money after all; just that it is reserved for a chosen few.
With social media being used mostly by the youth and young adults who are, among other things, either unemployed, denied tertiary scholarships, poorly remunerated, struggling to make ends meet or hassling every day with little success,
these people feel insulted to see members of the royal family their age, and some much younger, who are known to be unemployed, showing off a wealthy standard of living. Most feel the royal family is living in what one would term First World while the vast majority of emaSwati are in the Third World, without any hope that they will ever come out of this situation.
The royal family should not move alone into Canaan ( the land of milk and honey) and leave the majority of the Eswatini population stuck in the wilderness. During the recent civil unrest, the anger against the royal family was displayed for all to see. INCUMBENT
It is still there. Her Royal Highness Princess Sikhanyiso, the incumbent Minister of ICT and the King’s eldest daughter, rightly acknowledged this anger and the fact that the behaviour of members of the royal family, especially her brothers and sisters, has been somewhat reckless. She made this acknowledgement in a radio address where she was trying to calm the unprecedented mayhem of looting of shops and businesses as well as arson attacks on public and private property. Lest I be deemed to be exaggerating, here is what she said, verbatim: “Sititsetse neteluleko leticondzane nekutiphatsa kwemalangeni, emazinyane, emalangeni onkhe, indlu yonkhe ya Dlamini. Kuliciniso kutsi sisifakile sandla ekungakheni sitfombe lesingiso ng ekungaphatsi kahle timphahla. Lesicela lucolo kuko. Kulokunye sikhandze sekushelele lulwimi, yebo inhlitiyo ihlala lapho kushisa khona, ayibe yincane nine baka Ngwane.”
The anger is particularly because money for the royal family’s upkeep comes from the taxpayer as stated in the Constitution that ‘ The King and Ingwenyama shall be paid such emoluments and shall have such Civil List as may be prescribed’ and that ‘ Any remuneration prescribed under this section shall be a charge on and paid out of the Consolidated Fund and shall not be reduced during the continuance in office of King and iNgwenyama’.
Seeing members of the royal family’s lavish lifestyle therefore does not bode well with the public considering that the kingdom has a high poverty and unemployment rate. The Nation Magazine Editor, Bheki Makhubu, said an average liSwati’s wage cannot afford the lifestyle displayed by each of the royals even if they were to work for 200 years.
Time has come for the royal family to embody the life that emaSwati are living out there in order to avoid this ongoing anger and questions of their relevance. The current generation is not one to take things lying down but question everything and everyone. Monarchs around the globe have the task of convincing and displaying to this generation that they are still worth having.
According to a 2021 survey by YouGov, young people in Britain no longer think that country should keep the monarchy and more now want an elected head of state. 41 per cent of those aged 18 to 24 thought there should now be an elected head of state compared to 31 per cent who wanted a king or queen.
That was a reversal of sentiment from two years ago, when 46 per cent preferred the monarchy to 26 per cent who wanted it replaced.
However, overall the survey had better news for Queen Elizabeth, 95, and the royal family, with 61 per cent favouring the monarchy while just under a quarter thought it should be replaced with an elected figure.
During the months of the survey, the royal family was dealing with the death of the queen’s 99- year- old husband Prince Philip and the crisis that followed the interview by Elizabeth’s grandson Prince Harry and his wife Meghan with U. S. chat show host Oprah Winfrey.
Previous polls had indicated an age divide, with younger generations holding more favourable views of Harry and Meghan than their older counterparts who had overwhelmingly negative feelings about them.
The study concluded that even though there was no possibility of an end to the monarchy while the queen remained on the throne, there was, however, concern for the royals about a declining support among younger Britons.
The survey of 4 870 adults found 53 per cent of those aged between 25- 49 supported keeping the monarchy, down five percentage points from a similar poll in 2019, while support for an elected head of state was up 4 points. Among those aged over 65, 81 per cent backed the monarchy, almost unchanged from two years ago.
ROYAL
In Spain, the royal family, which is known for being Europe’s most scandal- prone royal family, is also not well loved. According to a 2018 poll by Ipsos Mori, 37 per cent Spanish respondents were in favour of abolishing their monarchy. Just over 20 per cent didn’t think abolishing the monarchy would make a difference, while 24 per cent thought it would make the future of the country worse. In a separate survey that followed a month later, more than half of Spanish respondents called for a referendum on the monarchy. The results showed a deep generational divide. Respondents aged 25 to 34- years- old were most in favour of a referendum - over 60 per cent called for one - followed by those aged 15 to 24 ( 58 per cent).
In Eswatini, the public conduct of the royal family is what will make or break the Institution of the Monarch. One might not impose on how to go about doing this but reference to the Constitution might offer an idea.
His Majesty and Ingwenyama could consult with Ligunqa, whom he is supposed to when it comes to important and sensitive matters. Ligunqa ( Bantfwabenkhosi) are princes of the realm, the paternal uncles and half- brothers of iNgwenyama who exercise functions of a sikhulu ( chief) over some area and whose mothers were given liphakelo ( authority to oversee and exercise jurisdiction over an area accorded by iNgwenyama in accordance with Swazi law and custom). Ligunqa ranks above liqoqo and is convened by iNgwenyama or the Ndlovukazi as Queen Regent. This is a matter of urgency and borders on the continued relevance of the over 400- year old institution.