SWALIMO ‘hijack’ Siphofaneni voter education
MBABANE – Members of the Swaziland Liberation Movement (SWALIMO) hijacked the Civic and Voter Education exercise at KaMkhweli Umphakatsi.
A group of close to 10 members of the political movement arrived at about 12:30pm at the hall situated at the entrance to Prince Mshengu’s Royal Kraal. At the time of their arrival, the voter education process was already in progress and the Chairman of the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) Prince Mhlabuhlangene was on the podium making his supplementary submissions.
Facilitators from the EBC, Eric Kunene and Tholakele Nhlabatsi had already made their presentations when the members of SWALIMO arrived and a question and answer session was opened after the chairman’s supplementary submissions. Out of 10 people who were picked to ask questions, eight were members of the political movement and five were not from the constituency. The members of the EBC team allowed the people to ask questions without indicating whether they were from the area or not.
The members of the political movement included the Deputy Secretary General (DSG) of the organisation Gift Dlamini, Spokesperson Thantaza Silolo, Organiser Sibongile Mamba, Hosea Indvuna Yenkhundla Richard Vilane and others. The leadership members of SWALIMO do not come from the area and they were all given an opportunity to ask questions ahead of those from KaMkhweli.
Upon realising that some of the people in attendance were not from the area, EBC facilitators, in consultation
‘‘We want to make our presence felt and this is a training ground for us to fill up the House of Assembly in 2023 if we fail to bring down the system this year.”
with Indvuna yeMphakatsi Ben Ngcamphalala requested that everyone who was going to make a submission or ask question should also identify the area where they came from.
“We have noted that at the beginning of the questions and answer session, we did not request that you identify where you come from and we would request that from now going forward, please do mention kutsi uphuma kusiphi sigodzi laKaMkhweli (which part of KaMkhweli do you come from). We just want to make sure that we have made an impact to the right people who will be participating in the by-elections,” said Eric Kunene from EBC.
Kunene went on to state the importance of educating the people who were going to participate in the election and also stressed that even those who were not coming from the area should learn.
After Kunene’s request of identification, SWALIMO Spokesperson Thantaza Silolo, who was the next speaker, refused to identify which area he was coming from and said he was not going to be the first one. “Allow me chairman and your team not to mention where I come from because other members did not mention it. I am here a liSwati and a person who is eligible to vote,” he said.
Indvuna Ngcamphalala also admonished the residents and members of the political organisation to respect the meeting and the EBC. He encouraged the people to address members of the commission with respect and honour.
Ngcamphalala said respect was important in the area and the people of KaMkhweli were known to be a peaceful but open populace. He spoke immediately after the submission made by Silolo who directed his questions to the chairman of the commission.
“Let me speak to you as residents of KaMkhweli and request that we put forward respect and honour elders and our guests. Here, we are known as people who are peaceful and respectful so Irequest that we show honour where honour is due,” he said.
SWALIMO’S GRAND PLAN
When questioned on their intentions during the civic education, the SWALIMO DSG confirmed that they came with an intention to take over the proceedings and make an impact. He said the organisation had a mandate to call for democracy through education and mobilisation at grassroots level. “Yes we took over the session we did not hijack it, that is what a political organisation must do. SWALIMO attended the civic education not to hijack, but to amplify the need for a democratically elected government. We want to make our presence felt and this is a training ground for us to fill up the House of Assembly in 2023 if we fail to bring down the system this year. This civic education was important for us,” he said.
Dlamini stated that they were going to spread to the other voting centres and they were looking at mobilising the people and politicise them ahead of the elections. He said the broader plan of the organisation was to make sure that more people were made aware of the different forms of liberation and democracy so that they could make sound decisions on their leadership.
Dlamini mentioned that the civic education was important for them to sharpen their knowledge on the system of governance and to equip themselves with intelligence. “During the civic education, it is where we could get a chance to voice the need for a people’s government and the challenges we have with the Tinkhundla System. As a movement it is our duty to sharpen the contradictions. Should all fail to emancipate the people now, come 2023 Parliament shall be blue and we will continue where President ‘Gawuzela’ ended,” he said.
Dlamini mentioned that he felt the chairman of EBC avoided issues when answering their questions and referred most to other government departments instead of attempting to answer them. In his supplementary submission, the Chairman of the EBC, Prince Mhlabuhlangene, likened the current voting system to a marriage of convenience between two people of different ethnicity. He said the country’s Constitution was the base of the Elections Act and people should always consider it as a work in progress.
He also stated that the country had a dual legal system of governance and the elections where mandated by the United Nations (UN), African Union (AU) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) treaties. “We are married to the two systems of governance and we cannot turn away from either of them, therefore, it is always important to educate yourself on how best you can treat each one. The election system we are using was given to us when the King accented the Constitution and since 2005, we are on a journey of discovery, we are trying to
find a way of making this marriage work within our space,” he said.
The chairman of the commission further mentioned that the country had one of the best Constitutions in the world. He said Eswatini needed to practice more of the laws laid down in the Constitution to allow the country to move forward. He mentioned that the EBC was also using the civic education as a platform to get suggestions and comments on how they could shape the election process and make it better.
“I have had a chance of talking to different envoys that alluded to the fact that the country had one of the best Constitutions in the world. Having said that, I cannot also begin to think that there are no faults, issues such as the practice of the law are still not a 100 per cent, but we are moving forward. This civic education exercise gives us a chance to meet the people and get their advices on how best we can improve the election system and process. We have received a lot of advices today and we have to set up regulations and make suggestions to the commission,” he said.
Members of SWALIMO took pictures with chairman of the commission after the exercise. The photo session was highlighted as an inclusive act showing tolerance to dissenting views.
SWALIMO PRAISES PRINCE MSHENGU
Meanwhile, Deputy Secretary General (DSG) of the Swaziland Liberation Movement (SWALIMO) Gift Dlamini has praised KaMkhweli Chief Prince Mshengu as a progressive leader.
Dlamini was referring to the chief’s stance on people who were not from the area, but wanted to participate in the civic and voter education exercise hosted by the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) in the area.
The exercise was meant to educate the people ahead of the upcoming by-elections, where Siphofaneni Constituency would be electing a new Member of Parliament (MP).
“We heard wisdom from the Chief, Prince Mshengu, when he said trying to fix something while one is not around may be a mistake. And his emphasis that the chairman of the EBC should take the concerns straight to the King was progressive. We are aware that the Indvuna had requested the chief to send away people who are not from that area. The chief refused and politely advised that people who were not from that community can creatively communicate through locals. That was progressive too,” said the DSG.
Dlamini also stated that the chief should not have mentioned that some of those who made submissions might be called to give a better understanding to their questions. He said such could be interpreted as intimidation by other people.