Home | News | Calm 2nd day of NAPSAWU strike

Calm 2nd day of NAPSAWU strike

13/07/2012 00:00:00 JABULISA DLAMINI

Font size:

MANZINI - Unlike the violence witnessed during the civil servants’ first day of the strike, the second day was calm.

At about 11am, about 20 civil servants gathered by the iLanga Centre, near the Magistrates Court.

They had hoped that more members would join them, however, this was not the case.

After members of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) had dispersed following their meeting at SNAT Centre at about 2pm, the civil servants took to the bus rank.

The National Public Service and Allied Workers Union (NAPSAWU) members brought the bus rank to a halt for about 20 minutes.

Some kombis were not able to exit the bus rank because of the many people who had blocked the main road.

The situation was rescued by the intervention of the police.

The civil servants then protested in the bus rank for two hours, chanting political slogans.

Head of the Operational Support Service Unit, Cruiser Ngcamphalala, together with the Manzini Regional Commander, Charles Tsabedze and senior police officers watched as the civil servants toyi-toyied.

After about 30 minutes, Ngcamphalala ordered the civil servants to leave the bus rank to allow public transport vehicles to operate unhindered.

However, the civil servants did not vacate the bus rank, an action which seemed to infuriate the public transport operators.

"These people should leave this place. We are not playing games here but working. This is rush hour and we will lose business as the protest is threatening our customers," one of the public transport drivers identified as Bheki said.

The civil servants want government to implement a cost of living adjustment of 4.5 per cent on their salaries across the board for the financial year 2011/12, and also want a salary review to be conducted by the government.

I was detained - Quinton

MANZINI - NAPSAWU President, Quinton Dlamini, was allegedly detained by the Royal Swaziland Police (RSP) yesterday.

Dlamini was allegedly taken in by the police at about 10am, and freed at 4pm yesterday.

He alleged he was arrested by plain-clothes police officers at the Regional Administration offices.

He said the officers were aboard a white Drug Unit double cab van.

"Five police officers grabbed me by my trousers and put me inside the van. The vehicle drove at a high speed and drove inside the Regional Headquarters where I was interrogated for the better part of the day," Dlamini claimed.

He said he was not assaulted, but was questioned about Wednesday’s strike in Mbabane. Dlamini alleged that the police officers took both his cellphones and put them in a big envelope during the interrogation.

"They told me I cause havoc in the country. They also said they had taken me in for interrogation because they heard me singing at the Coronation Park saying ‘Viva Pudemo’.

"They asked if I was aware that mentioning PUDEMO was a serious offence as this is a proscribed terrorist entity," Dlamini alleged. He claimed he was finally released at 3pm.

Dlamini said he was driven in a police vehicle and dropped off along Gwamile Street in Mbabane, where he was given his cellphones back.

"I was shocked when they dropped me in Mbabane because I told them very well that I stayed in Manzini. I then struggled with transport until I decided to call one of the association’s members who fetched me with the union vehicle," Dlamini alleged.