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Friday, 19 April 2024

Swaziland Newsletter No. 823 – 19 April 2024

 

Swaziland Newsletter No. 823 – 19 April 2024

News from and about Swaziland, compiled by Global Aktion, Denmark (www.globalaktion.dk) in collaboration with Swazi Media Commentary (www.swazimedia.blogspot.com), and sent to all with an interest in Swaziland - free of charge.

Unprecedented leak reveals suspicious money flows through Africa's last absolute monarchy

Media release, The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, 16 April 2024 

The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists is proud to bring you our latest investigation: Swazi Secrets

The tiny southern African kingdom of Eswatini — once known as Swaziland — has evolved against a constant backdrop: the monarchy.

While most of the population of 1.2 million faces grinding poverty, King Mswati III and members of his expansive family flaunt their wealth, from flashy bespoke watches to fleets of luxury cars.

Now, an unprecedented leak from inside the Eswatini Financial Intelligence Unit reveals how the king’s broken promises and his inner circle have enabled suspicious money to flow through the landlocked country and beyond.

Swazi Secrets is based on more than 890,000 leaked internal records from the EFIU shared with ICIJ by the nonprofit Distributed Denial of Secrets. ICIJ coordinated a team of 38 journalists across 11 countries to explore the documents, which include bank records, police investigation reports, court affidavits and transcripts, and confidential exchanges between government agencies in the region.

The investigation highlights 
the extraordinary role of Mswati III and some of his key allies in supporting a new bank in a years-long tussle with the regulator, the Central Bank of Eswatini. 

It also exposes how a “special economic zone” — touted as a way to repair the country’s tattered economy — became a ghost town home to two 
phantom gold refineries channeling millions of dollars to Dubai.

“When we talk of the Swazi economy we can say the king himself is the economy, because Swaziland is emblematic of a country where the entire economy is actually captured by royal interests,” said one human rights activist, who asked not be named for fear of retribution.

READ: How international gold dealers exploited a tiny African kingdom’s economic dream

READ: The central bank in a tiny African country tried to block a suspicious banking venture. Then the king’s allies intervened.

ABOUT: About the Swazi Secrets investigation

FAQS: Answers to questions about the leak, ICIJ’s reporting, and more

Stay tuned for more Swazi Secrets stories from ICIJ and our partners in the coming days and weeks. 

See also

International team of investigative journalists exposes Eswatini Finance Minister Neal Rijikernberg on shady establishment of Farmers Bank, an alleged conduit for multi-billion money-laundering

https://swazilandnews.co.za/fundza.php?nguyiphi=6382

 

‘eSwatini not creating enough jobs’

By Nomfanelo Maziya, eSwatini Observer, 14 April 2024

SOURCE 

Business Eswatini (BE) Vice President Industrial Relations and Social Policy Committee Andrew Le Roux has highlighted concerned over an economy struggling to attract investment and generate employment opportunities.

This was during the first edition of ‘A Business to Government Engagement’ at Emafini Country Lodge yesterday.

"The harsh reality is that Eswatini is not creating any jobs, and we have not been doing so for quite some time,” said Le Roux.

He emphasised the critical role investment plays in job creation, particularly foreign direct investment (FDI).

However, Eswatini seems to be failing to attract this vital source of capital according to the VP.

Le Roux pointed to several factors hindering FDI in Eswatini.

One major concern is the perceived inefficiency of the court system.

“Our most recent competitive index ranking tells a worrying story," he said. "It highlights catastrophic inefficiencies in our courts, which discourages investors seeking a stable and predictable legal environment,” he said.

To read more of this report, click here

http://new.observer.org.sz/details.php?id=22321

 

280,000 emaSwati face hunger crisis

By Sifiso Sibandze, Times of eSwatini, 16 April 2024

SOURCE 

MBABANE: Over 280 000 emaSwati, who are already food insecure, will continue languishing in hunger as the dryer and hotter-than-usual El Nino-induced weather sharply dented maize harvest prospects across Eswatini’s main maize growing regions.

This has raised risks for higher food-price inflation. According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) analysis, about 238 500 people are faced with acute food insecurity (IPC Phase 3 [Crisis] and above) between June and September 2023. The number of food insecure people is said to have increased to nearly 283 000 between October 2023 and March 2024, moderately higher than projections in the corresponding period of 2022/23. The anticipated year‑on‑year increase in acute food insecurity is underpinned by the reduced maize harvest and high food prices, while a slow economic recovery from the pandemic, causing income losses, is further constraining households’ economic access to food.

With the projected acute decline in grain harvests in Eswatini and other main grain-producing countries in southern Africa, the price of white and yellow maize is expected to soar further to record levels, exacerbating the persisting cost of living crisis. According to the Director of Agriculture, Nelson Mavuso, inadequate rains in some of the country’s key producing areas – Mahlangatsha, Sitsatsaweni, Sigombeni, Ntfonjeni, Dlangeni, Sigangeni will result in a decline in the harvest, affecting the food security position of Eswatini. “The drought from the El Nino weather pattern has withered leaves, wilted cobs and raised the spectre of hunger for thousands of farmers and emaSwati, especially the vulnerable groups, the elderly and those with disabilities,” Mavuso said.

To read more of this report, click here

http://www.times.co.sz/news/144712-280%C2%A0000-emaswati-face-hunger-crisis.html

 

The luxury life of King Mswati III: eSwatini monarch arrives in SA in ‘flying palace’

King Mswati III is thought to live a life of opulence, with assets worth millions

By Itumeleng Mafisa, The Citizen (South Africa), 16 April 2024

SOURCE 

Swazi King boards a plane before a visit to South Africa Picture: Screengrab from video


The Swaziland People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) said it was shocked that eSwatini’s King Mswati III decided to use a luxury plane to come for a working visit to South Africa.

According to SPLM president Vusi Shongwe, King Mswati III used what they described as a “palace in the air” to visit his neighbouring country.

King Mswati III, who landed in the country on Sunday, met President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday to discuss matters related to the diaspora, including concerns about the former president of Botswana Ian Khama.

Civic groups in eSwatini have been raising concerns about the plight of the people of eSwatini under one of Africa’s last remaining absolute monarchies. There had also been reports of human rights abuses under the current government.

King Mswati’s mode of transport to South Africa, the Airbus 340-300 aircraft, was bought in 2018 from Taiwan by the king as a 50th birthday gift to himself. It cost of R2.6 billion.

“It was customised from a commercial aircraft into an ultra luxurious flying palace,” Shongwe said.

According to Shongwe, the plane features a living area, meeting/dining area, a private bedroom and bathroom amenities for the king, among other features.

“Concerns have been raised on the cost effectiveness of using this large aircraft with huge flying cost implications for a less than an hour-long trip to the Republic for his meeting with President Ramaphosa,” Shongwe said.

He said technical analysis of the flight and the fuel needed calculated that flying the plane for an hour would be more than R350 000.

Apart from his plane, Shongwe said the king lives a life of opulence with assets worth millions. This includes cars, property, jewellery and artwork.

He said the king receives at least at least R1bn annually from national treasury.

“This man does not pay tax and he is not liable for any taxation from the government. Out of a national budget he gets R1bn from the government to him,” he said.

Shongwe said the king had several palaces across eSwatini, the most opulent one being the Lozitha palace which house houses the kings banquet hall – which has gold decorations and expensive chandeliers.

He also had at least 20 Mercedes Maybach SUVs delivered to him. The king also boasts a watch collection with some of the most expensive watches in the world. This includes a Jacob & Co Billionaire Ashoka watch with 302 emerald-cut baguette diamonds set in 18k white gold. The king also has a range of Rolexes.

“The cars were for his wives and family members, there were other cars that he bought like Merc Klassen -VIP sprinters and V classes. These were custom made,” he said.

In 2019, King Mswati III made headlines when a video showed the arrival of the Rolls-Royce cars as gifts for his 13 wives.

 

Pigg’s Peak Govt Hospital crisis

By Sibongile Sukati, eSwatini Observer, 18 April 2024

SOURCE 

While things are falling apart at the Pigg’s Peak Government Hospital, the ministry of health is elusive with answers on what is happening at the medical facility.

The facility is plagued by broken equipment and rotting food as the cold-room is malfunctioning, raising fears of contamination resulting in food poisoning, and patients forced to sleep without hospital bedding as the laundry machine is faulty.

This comes as the ministry of health on Monday commemorated World Health Day where Minister, Mduduzi Matsebula, said they had noted a gap in creating an enabling environment for individuals to take positive health decisions and that meant addressing things that were beyond the individual’s power yet directly had an impact on the health of that particular person.

The minister said this included access to clean water, clean air, environmental issues, proper infrastructure and the availability of healthy food.

However, concerned staff members have raised red flags, drawing attention to the perilous situation they are faced with.  

They said things had got worse from the drugs shortage crisis and were now actually frightening.      

They listed a number of faults with the hospital’s major equipment, which includes a non-functional cold room, a broken industrial washing machine and medical waste littered all over the hospital as it has not been burnt.

This is because according to the members of staff the hospital is without fuel, which is used to get the incinerator fired up and burn the medical waste, which also includes used syringes.

As a result, the buckets of used syringes (sharp containers) are stacked in a corner next to the other medical waste that had not been disposed of.

The last two drums of fuel, according to the staff members, were delivered on March 19 and last for about a week.

“The incinerator was delivered to the hospital around December last year and was commissioned on January 15,” said the source.

“However, since there has been no fuel, the hospital has not been able to get rid of the waste,” said another member of staff member.

On the issue of the non-functioning cold room, the employees reported that the compressor was not functional and as a result they were forced to keep the food in a non-operational fridge.

They said as a result food items such as dairy products were not being kept under cold temperatures and that these included dairy products and vegetables.

“We are afraid that this will lead to food contamination which will result in food poisoning,” complained the staff members who said they were concerned about their welfare as much as that of the patients. 

To read more of this report, click here

http://new.observer.org.sz/details.php?id=22340

 

Global MPs committee vows to continue monitoring pro-democracy MPs case

By Eugene Dube, Swati Newsweek, 15 April, 2024

SOURCE 

MBABANE: Inter-Parliamentary (IPU) committee pledged to continue monitoring the case of two imprisoned Swazi pro-democracy MPS Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube.

The organization's statement reads thus, “Reaffirms its belief that, over and above ongoing and new efforts to strengthen democracy in Eswatini, a mission by the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, which would include meetings with all the relevant authorities, a meeting with the two members of parliament and their lawyers, along with meetings with relevant third parties, would offer a useful opportunity to discuss the issues that have emerged in the case at hand and to examine possible solutions; is pleased to learn that the Eswatini delegation informed the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, at the hearing held during the 148th IPU Assembly, that such a mission would still be welcome; and requests the Secretary General to continue to engage with the current parliamentary authorities of Eswatini to dispatch the mission as soon as possible; Requests the Secretary General to convey this decision to the Speaker of the House of Assembly, the complainant and any third party likely to be in a position to supply relevant information; Requests the Committee to continue examining the case and to report back to it in due course,” the IPU said in a statement.

See also

eSwatini MP Mduduzi Gawzela Simelane applauds International Parliamentary Union(IPU) decision that declared arrest of pro-democracy MPs on politically motivated terrorism charges unlawful.

https://swazilandnews.co.za/fundza.php?nguyiphi=6366

 

Lions decor on gate seen as disrespect to King

By Sabelo Ndzinisa, eSwatini News, 13 April 2024

SOURCE 

NGINAMADVOLO: An adult man of Nginamadvolo in the Hhohho region has voluntarily removed pictures of two lions on the gate leading to his homestead after he was accused by some residents of showing disrespect to the King.

For two years now, the pictures of the two lions formed part of the décor for the man’s gate but it seems this has not been sitting well with some residents. In their view, the man’s decision to display the pictures of the two lions outside his homestead’s gate was an act of disrespect towards not just the country’s culture but the King himself.
In the Eswatini culture and customs, a lion is associated with the King while an elephant is aligned with the Queen Mother.

Some residents in the area are said to have taken up the matter with some umphakatsi members to whom they voiced out their displeasure about the impression the man’s gate was giving in as far as culture was concerned. It must be revealed, however , that the two lion pictures have been outside the gate for about two years now allegedly without anybody complaining, as attested by the home owner  when speaking to the Eswatini News this week.

He did not hide his disappointment at the manner in which this issue is being handled, pointing out that the pictures of the lions have been in existence for a long time. “I am very surprised that there are people who have issues with the pictures of the lions on my gate because if my memory serves me well, they have been there for about two years.
“Why have an issue now? It really beats  me, but I have to respect that people will always have their opinions on things and you cannot control that,” he said.

To read more of this report, click here

http://www.times.co.sz/news/144676-lions-decor-on-gate-seen-as-disrespect-to-king.html

 

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