Times Of Swaziland: NDVUNA REMOVED AS CLERK TO PARLY

NDVUNA REMOVED AS CLERK TO PARLY
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BY SIBONGILE SUKATI on 15/10/2020 00:31:00


MBABANE – In a shocking turn of events, Clerk to Parliament Ndvuna Dlamini has
been removed.
The news of Dlamini’s redeployment started spreading like wildfire yesterday
evening after it was discovered that the Parliamentary Service Board (PSB) was
locked in a meeting without Dlamini being present. When contacted last night,
Dlamini confirmed that he had been reliably informed that he had been redeployed
to a certain ministry.
When pressed further on which ministry it would be, Dlamini asked to divulge
more information later.
Consulting
Dlamini said, however, he was still consulting with his lawyers because his
purported redeployment was both a violation of the Constitution of Eswatini and
the Parliamentary Service Board Act.
“Moreover His Majesty’s name has been abused,” said Dlamini in an
interview last night.
He said he believed the move was a ploy to stop him from concluding his
submission before the Public Accounts Committee.
The clerk to Parliament’s position is similar to that of principal secretary
or controlling officer.
This is not the first time that Dlamini has made allegations to the effect that
the King’s name was being abused.
His troubles started when he appeared before the PAC in August 2020, where he
alleged that his duties as clerk to Parliament were being tampered with by
politicians.
The clerk had informed the PAC, which is chaired by Matsanjeni North MP Phila
Buthelezi, that he was not in control of trips undertaken by politicians as most
of them were awarded trips by the presiding officers; Senate President Lindiwe
Dlamini and Speaker Petros Mavimbela.
The clerk to Parliament had further alleged that the Senate president was fond
of travelling to New York and insisted on travelling first class.
As a result, Ndvuna  revealed that he had since engaged the Prime Minister
Ambrose Mandvulo who was the minister responsible for parliamentary affairs.
During his subsequent sitting before the PAC, Ndvuna had informed the committee
that his meeting with the PM had gone very well as the latter had promised to
work on the matter.
The clerk had even informed the PAC that he was considering seeking an audience
with the King as some politicians were keen on abusing his name to carry out
their agenda.
Bullied
He had promised to table in writing all the instances wherein he alleged he was
bullied to the PAC.
However, during a Senate sitting, the Senate president denied all the
allegations levelled against her by Ndvuna.
In fact, in a letter which was written by the president last year after Ndvuna
had first made his presentations before the committee, she had stated that the
motive behind the clerk making the untrue statements about her to the PAC raised
a very serious question.
The Senate president further submitted that the clerk’s submission before the
PAC was a serious cause for concern and particularly disturbing for among other
reasons that he had weekly meetings with presiding officers, but the matters
raised before the committee were not once brought up by Ndvuna in that forum.
Meanwhile, members of the PSB include the Senate president, Speaker, Mhlume MP
Victor Malambe, former Pigg’s Peak MP Hlobisile Ndlovu, who is now a member of
the Ludzidzini Council, Jabulile Mashwama who is the Managing Director of the
Eswatini Water Services Corporation and Senator Chief Mphatfwa. The clerk to
Parliament is an ex-officio member of the Board.
Efforts to get comment from the Senate president were unsuccessful as she had
not responded to a text message sent to her by 8pm. However, unconfirmed rumours
were to the effect that one of the senior female officers in Parliament had been
appointed as the next clerk to Parliament.