King Mswati III of Swaziland is refusing to recognise the
vote of no-confidence in his government, an international news agency has revealed
for the first time.
He is said to be ‘extremely upset’ by the vote and is
refusing to meet with the Speaker of the House of Assembly on the issue.
The crisis began on 3 October 2012 when the House of
Assembly passed a vote of no-confidence in the Swazi government by a majority
greater than three-fifths. According to the constitution when this happens the
king must sack the cabinet.
But, King Mswati III, generally recognised as sub-Saharan
Africa’s last remaining absolute monarch, has not done so. And, his government
has refused to resign.
The Inter Press Service (IPS) news and feature agency
reported a ‘highly placed source’ saying the king ‘is not prepared to act on
the vote because he was extremely upset by the House of Assembly’s resolution’.
IPS reported King Mswati was refusing to meet with Prince
Guduza the Speaker of the House of Assembly about the vote. In Swaziland, the
protocol is that the king has to be officially told by the Speaker about decisions
of the House before he can act.
The revelation is the first time since the crisis began
that information about King Mswati’s role has become public. In Swaziland the
state-censored media and the self-censoring private media reported the cause of
the delay in the king’s action was because he was discussing what to do with
advisers.
Some voices in the media blamed Barnabas Dlamini the
Prime Minister for the crisis, saying that he should have resigned once the
no-confidence vote was passed. However, the constitution puts the onus clearly
on the king to sack the government. It is a constitutional requirement for him
to do so; there is no allowance for him to do anything else.
The king personally appointed Dlamini as Prime Minister
in 2008 in contravention of the constitution and together the king and PM
picked the government. Many ministers, including the PM himself, were not
elected to parliament, but appointed by King Mswati.
IPS reported political analysts saying the crisis ‘has
exposed the undemocratic nature of the Swazi system of government and that it
has put Mswati in a precarious position where he has to choose between the will
of the people and those he has placed in power’.
Swaziland government spokesperson Percy Simelane told IPS
that the cabinet was still waiting for the king’s decision.
See also
KING PROVES CONSTITUTION IS WORTHLESS
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