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YES, DLAMINISM EXISTS

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I am not sure how Prince Masitsela would like to be remembered long after he has departed this world, for he has displayed an uncanny knack of putting his mouth in it lately and in the process riling just about everyone else but, of course, probably with the exception of the phalanx of praise singers and beneficiaries of the obtaining polity.

The prince, who famously once claimed that royalty was closer to God, triggered an angry reaction from the public when he attempted to nullify the narrative of the existence of the cult of Dlaminism gaining traction among emaSwati since it was first publicly exposed by Sandile Dlamini, the former head honcho of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). And the reference to Dlaminism was certainly not complimentary to the Dlaminis but was in fact a frontal attack on what he perceived was the deep rooted source of the endemic corruption compromising efforts to develop Eswatini to extract from the grips of poverty and deliver a better lifestyle to emaSwati. He reasoned that it was essential to rid the country of Dlaminism if the country was to combat the scourge of corruption.

Speaking to Times SUNDAY, Prince Masitsela denied that there was anything like Dlaminism. He wondered ‘how could people make a mockery of us when we take such good care of them’. Unbeknown to him, the prince’s condescending and patronising tone and choice of words was sufficient confirmation of exactly that which he was trying, apparently without success, to deny. And that is the existence of Dlaminism that is holding this country to ransom.

As I see it, what the former chief executive officer of FSRA said was not new but is what just about every liSwati mutters under their breath for fear of reprisals. And of course in a country where freedom of expression is against an unwritten official policy, everyone present and those who were later to read in the newspapers what he had said, was aghast and feared the worst that could befall him for saying what every discerning liSwati knew but afraid to talk about.

considered

 As it were Sandile merely scratched the surface; Dlaminism permeates every facet of Eswatini life one way or the other. While ordinary folk have to work hard initially to attain academic success and later skills and competencies to be considered for key positions, the same cannot be said of the Dlaminis, who do not need anything for appointment and upward mobility except their surname. But one should hasten to mention that not all Dlaminis are beneficiaries of the largesse of the state and that it would be unfair to band them together with those in the frontlines in an apparently social class structured society. 

 At Sibaya Prince Masitsela pointedly made it known that nothing serious would come out of that meeting but that it had been convened to enable emaSwati to vent their spleen, batihhamule.

 As can be surmised, the prince could not have claimed that they were closer to God and that Sibaya was a talk shop where emaSwati vented their spleen without necessarily being listened to and taken seriously by the powers that be had it not been for the Dlaminism whose existence he is trying to deny.

 The prince’s denial flies in the face of reason given the fact that the job of prime minister is exclusively reserved for the Dlaminis, a scenario grudgingly accepted by the voiceless emaSwati. 

The chorus of voices that erupted in response to Prince Masitsela’s denial of the existence of Dlamini is instructive, hopefully also to the venerable prince, apropos the body of opinion on the subject. Unfortunately the truth is not currency to the obtaining political hegemony but there are things - such as realignment of loyalties - that cannot be hidden forever. 

reality

The truth always has a way of coming out however much it is denied. The prince and his ilk must sober up and step out of their cocoons and understand the reality of what a growing body of emaSwati is thinking about their circumstances. They can begin by understanding that emaSwati no longer have respect for but fear their leaders. They ought to come to terms that what the leadership effusively praise as peace is not that but silence of discontentment and fear. 

They must understand that what passes as loyalty is a means to a decent meal once in a while because the majority of emaSwati are slaves to the tyranny of poverty occasioned by bad governance – underpinned by systemic looting of natural resources and every public institution – that does not put any premium on the people but is self-serving and benefitting the Dlaminis and their cronies.  

Ah yes, Dlaminism lives and is ruinous to this country. 

 

   

 

 

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