The Director of Public Prosecutions has been instructed to prepare charges against the country’s Prime Minister Sibusiso Dlamini following his statement that court decisions made by judges against the state will not be recognised.
He is expected to be charged with interference with the course of justice. A senior official at the directorate’s chambers said on Friday King Mswati III had personally ordered that charges be laid against the prime minister.
”The DPP is preparing the docket and Dlamini could be charged any time from now,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
”Other charges could also be preferred against Dlamini but at the moment we are working on that of interfering with the course of justice,” he said.
Recently, Dlamini announced on national radio and television that the government had decided not to recognise the decisions where the commissioner of police was found guilty of contempt of court. He also said a judgement which effectively removed various powers from Mswati’s portfolio would also not be recognised.
These statements caused an outcry both inside and outside Swaziland, prompting workers’ unions to plan a national strike for December 19 and 20.
Meanwhile, on Friday employers in Swaziland lashed out at the government of King Mswati III, demanding a return to the rule of law and good governance.
Their action follows the resignation of all six judges on Swaziland’s Appeals Court and comes ahead of the general strike to demand greater democracy in Africa’s last absolute monarchy.
The judges, all South Africans, quit at the end of November after Prime Minister Sibusiso Dlamini said the government would ignore a ruling allowing some 200 citizens to return to land from which they were evicted in 2000 after they refused to accept his elder brother, Prince Maguga, as the chief in the area.
The Association of the Swazi Business Community, the Federation of Swaziland Employers (FSE) and the Swaziland Chamber of Commerce and Industry issued a joint statement saying that ”as employers we cannot afford to work under such an uncertain environment”.
The three associations met on Thursday evening where they resolved that the state of affairs in Swaziland could not be left as they are.
”We resolved that it is time that the business community in Swaziland takes a firm action in demanding the return of the rule of law, good governance and the restoration of a positive image of the country that would attract foreign investment,” their statement said.
It added that the prime minister’s decision to disregard the ruling of the Appeals Court had greatly affected the country’s image and destroyed the rule of law.
”The prime minister and the king are tasked with making sure that citizens uphold the rule of law and it becomes a problem when the direct opposite happens,” it said.
The collapse of the rule of law was responsible for a deteriorating economic environment, spiralling budget deficit, food shortages, poor credit rating, increased financial risk and questionable capital expenditure, it added. – Sapa