Written by Fundizwi Sikhondze
Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini on Thursday 6th June 2024 may have single-handedly plunged his government into its first major political crisis.
While fielding questions from the country's editors the Prime Minister was asked a question by The Nation Magazine's Bheki Makhubu about the audit reports from the Auditor General (AG) regarding his tenure as the Chief Executive Officer of the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA). The audits had allegedly flagged unaccounted for expenditure of E180M worth of funds and lately there a report which questioned expenditure of E30M from the NDMA.
Prime Minister's reply left his audience of journalist and cabinet ministers gasping as perhaps none were ready for it. He said "It is important that we have to begin to look at whether the reports of the Auditor General can now be relied upon". He continued ,"We now have to work on whether the reports of the Auditor General can be relied upon. Let me give you an example. The country now understands that there is E180million missing from the NDMA. There was never E180million that is missing. Now he has actually said there is another E30millioon and people have started writing about E210 Million. All that is false I can surely tell you”. The Prime Minister finished by boldly stating that ,"Infact this all points to the incompetence in that office".
With those words the political crisis ensured.
Concerns from different stakeholders
In reacting to the statement, on Friday 7th
June 2024 parliaments Public Accounts Committee (PAC) resolved to engage
in a boycott by stopping all pending sittings. The PAC utilise reports of the
AG’s office to probe public funds usage. PAC Chairperson MP Madala Mhlanga was quoted in the media to have said
that in light of the utterances of the Prime Minister it would be detrimental
for the PAC to continue with their work since a cloud has been cast upon the AG
office and its work output.
The Civil Service Commission (CSC) Chairperson Simanga
Mamba has also been reported to have released a statement weighing in on the matter in defence of the AG’s office. In the statement he went as far as declaring that
attacking the AG’s office is tantamount attacking accountability in the
country. Mamba then suggested that there are avenues like the superior courts which
may be approached by aggrieved parties to set aside AG reports. He further
advised that on issues of suspected incompetence and capacity of the AG his
office can be approached in terms sections 186 (2) and 207 of the constitution.
Section 186 (2, b) of the constitution empowers the
CSC to, “Enquire or cause to be enquired into any grievance or complaint
whether or not leading to disciplinary action”. Whereas Section 207 (9)
declares that the AG may only be removed in office by the CSC if they have
committed serious misconduct similar to judges (covered in Section 158) such as
serious misbehaviour, inability to perform the functions of office arising from
infirmity of body or mind.
Business Eswatini Chief Executive Officer Nathi
Dlamini was interviewed by the Eswatini Sunday Observer and he suggested that
the attack on the AG would affect the confidence of investors in the economy.
He displayed particular concern with the attitude of the bond holders particularly
investors who wanted to invest in the recently launched Johannesburg Stock
Exchange (JSE) bonds that the government has issued to raise funds.
Far from deescalating the issue and responding to the
Times of Eswatini Sunday the spokesperson for the AGs office Bongile Mavuso is reported to have indicated
that they will be guided by the outcomes of the consultations that the PAC is
engaged in regarding the matter. She further mentioned that they would be
seeking the indulgence of the Attorney General as well as the continental audit
institution, the African Organisation of English Speaking Supreme Audit
Institutions (AFROSAI-E).
In their Sunday 09 June 2024 Eswatini Online publication, The Bridge, called the Prime
Minister A Political Novice Determined to Dismantle a Troubled Nation. They went further and drew parallels to Prime Minister Russell's utterances to the 22 year old November 2002
statement by the then Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini where he
effectively declared that judgements that had declared the eviction of citizens
in Macetjeni and KaMkhweli as unlawful would not be honoured by the government.
AG Office's skeletons
The AG is may not be without blight spots on their record. The most recent anticipated probe, the health ministry probe was thrown into controversy when one of the consulted investigators was exposed to have been soliciting for bribes from officers of the health ministry being probed. The AG also found himself directly in controversy when one of the suppliers publicly (in court papers) declared that he (the AG) had come to his (the supplier) house with the report and allowed the supplier to take pictures of the report. There were also media reports that suggested that the AG may have unduly engaged his associates in consultancy work of his office, suggesting that there may have been corrupt or conflict of interest issues with their work.
It is not yet clear what action will be taken by the affected structures particularly by the parliament who are empowered by section 68 (1e) to pass a vote of no confidence on the Prime Minister Russell by having a resolution passed by two thirds of house of assembly MPs. This action is understood would lead to his being recalled by the King.
The next few days will give an indication of whether
the matter is will be deescalated or further escalated by the parties involved.
Whatever the outcome in the next few days it is clear that Prime Minister
Russell appears to be slowly becoming a polarising figure in the body politic of Eswatini.
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