Times Of Swaziland: SECURITY THREATS GROUND SOME GOVT OPERATIONS

SECURITY THREATS GROUND SOME GOVT OPERATIONS
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Times Reporters on 09/08/2022 15:59:00


MANZINI – Part of the government machinery came to a grinding halt yesterday
as offices and schools did not render services.
The government machinery stopped operations following an audio clip purporting
to be a threat announcement by an anonymous ‘commander’. The audio advised
security forces to withdraw their services in defending the Tinkhundla System of
Government, while also making a litany of threats which cannot be repeated given
their nature. In the audio, the members of the State security organs were given
14 days (which elapsed last Friday), to withdraw the said services. This audio
clip came at a time when the nation was still anticipating partaking in a
national dialogue, which political parties have been calling for, subsequent to
the political unrest experienced in June /July 2021.
This was subsequent to the stalemate between government and the Public Sector
Union (PSUs) of Swaziland, wherein the latter advised civil servants to stay put
in their places of abode in fear of the threats which were supposedly issued by
the ‘commander’ and the former insisting that the purported threats were a
‘hoax’. Yesterday, a majority of government services were not rendered as
the offices were vacated by civil servants as early as 10am. Services like the
issuance of travel documents, birth and death certificates; national identity
documents and paying for government services at Revenue Offices, were not
available. The closure of some government ministries and departments resulted in
a number of people returning home without any assistance. Some offices and
departments were operating in the morning, but were closed at about 10am as
there was fear of the unknown.
Locked
The offices and departments had their doors locked and padlocks hanging from the
burglar proof doors. Some people in Manzini were seen waiting in anticipation
that the offices would be later opened for them to access services; however,
this did not happen and they ended up leaving after lunch. On the other hand,
learners in most schools were ordered to return home. This was said to be as a
result of some parents not allowing their children to attend lessons yesterday.
Some head teachers said they had to release the learners early in spite of the 
on-going examinations. They claimed that they could not proceed with the
examination while other pupils were not present. The head teachers, who spoke to
this publication, expressed fear that the examinations could be thrown into
disarray as they did not know what would happen during the course of the week.
They said the examinations were critical as the grades accorded to learners were
the ones used to secure places in the next grades for those sitting for external
examinations. Also, some of the head teachers acknowledged that there were
teachers who had not reported for work and their suspicions were that the
threats which had been circulated regarding their safety were the cause. They
also highlighted that there was uncertainty on the availability of public
transport, which might have deterred the teachers and learners from attending
the lessons of the day.
Meanwhile, in most bus ranks across the country, public transport was
operational and available. However, despite its availability, there were minimal
commuters. Despite the threats which advised the public to stay at home, textile
workers in Matsapha had reported for work yesterday morning. However, they did
not work the whole day like in most instances as they were released early. This
publication started monitoring the situation in Matsapha at 6am and at that
time, public transport vehicles operating between Manzini/Matsapha Industrial
Site were available, thus the workers managed to get to work on time.
Factories
At around 8am, this publication visited some of the textile factories located in
the industrial hub of the country and found that they were operating normally
and at 100 per cent workforce.
However, later on, it was gathered that some factories released their workers
just after the lunch-hour. A source close to the matter said the factories
decided to release the workers early for their safety. In fact, he said they
took the unrest threats seriously, because of what happened in June/July 2021,
where workers who were going to work were caught in the crossfire.
“They feared that the threats could materialise and the workers’ lives would
be at risk when going back home in the late afternoon, thus they released them
early,” the source said.
It was further reported that there was also uncertainty regarding the
availability of public transport, thus some of the employers in the sector
decided to release the workers early while public transport vehicles were still
available. Some of the employers confirmed that they released the workers before
knock- off time for their safety. They said they would be monitoring the
situation and they had also asked the workers to update them so that they could
plan ahead.
Meanwhile, the Eswatini Textile and Apparel Traders Association (ETATA)
Chairperson, Tokky Hou, confirmed earlier on the day that workers managed to
report for duty in the factories yesterday. However, she could not be reached
for a comment later on as her mobile phone rang unanswered for the better part
of yesterday afternoon. A WhatsApp message was sent to her, but she had not
responded by the time of compiling this report.