If the state of emergency is declared the government will be able to impose wage cuts on public servants without consultation with trade unions.
The Swazi Government would also be able to enforce other measures as it saw fit (depending upon the actual wording of the emergency declaration).
Logcogco told the Times Sunday there was too much delay in tackling the economic crisis, caused by ‘endless negotiations’.
In a state of emergency, the newspaper reported him saying, ‘government was going to enforce things that have been proven to be ideal for economic transformation’. The newspaper did not give details of what these measures might be.
The Times Sunday, an independent newspaper in Swaziland, is claiming today (24 July 2011) that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) advised the kingdom, ruled by King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, to declare a state of emergency.
The newspaper quotes an unnamed source saying, ‘We are aware that the IMF advised us to declare a state of emergency but we haven’t done anything about that, and the country is really drowning.’
The source goes on, ‘If we declare the crisis as disaster, it means we are raising a global alarm that the country is on a brink of collapse. In-fact, we are sending an SOS (sihlaba inyandzaleyo) as a nation. As it is, some countries believe that we are up to a trick to rob them. We have to bear in mind that countries in Europe don’t trust us, they actually don’t trust our system of governance.’
The Times Sunday reports Logcogco saying, ‘IMF went on to advise us as a country to declare a state of emergency on the economic problems.’
It adds, ‘He had personally expected government to have, at least, done something about the IMF’s advice.’
The newspaper does not publish confirmation from the IMF that it advised on a state of emergency. It also says, ‘Macanjana Motsa, Government Press Secretary, said nothing was communicated to government about declaring a state of emergency on the economic problems.’
So all we have is an unnamed source and the chair of Liqoqo saying a state of emergency is necessary.
It looks like Swaziland’s ruling elite are trying to impose a state of emergency, which will withdraw yet more of the Swazi people’s rights, and blame it on a foreign organisation – the IMF.
See also
‘FREEZE KING’S ASSETS’: TEACHERS
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/06/freeze-kings-assets-teachers.html
IMF LETTER IS NO COMFORT AT ALL
http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2011/05/imf-letter-is-no-comfort-at-all.html
It is all crazy. How can they declare a state of econoic emergency on the people that are so poor. They should be able to explain to the ordinary civil servants who are shouldering so much dependancy burden on what happened to the money. It is known howmuch money is siphoned from government by the elite in Swaziland everynow and then. It is not public servants that have contributed to this crisis and blaming them does not help the situation. We know how the economy of Swaziland is controlled only by 10% of the population and this is well documented. Who is this 10%? It is the King, his brother, his relatives, his friends and politicians. Now that they have created this mess, they want to further do untold damage to those that are already poor. Why not go to a refferundum so as to solicit the views of the people to find out if they are happy with Tinkhundla or not? We are tired of a dlaministic system. We want the rule by the majority.
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