Times Of Swaziland: DC POSTPONED, JUNIOR OFFICERS SING ‘NKOSI SIKELELA I-AFRICA’

DC POSTPONED, JUNIOR OFFICERS SING ‘NKOSI SIKELELA I-AFRICA’
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Sibusiso Zwane on 07/12/2022 09:19:00


MATSAPHA - The 20 junior police officers, who were summoned to appear before a
disciplinary panel, sang Nkosi Sikelela i-Africa after the hearing was postponed
yesterday.
Nkosi Sikelela i-Africa is the national anthem of South Africa, which was
adopted in 1997. It is a hybrid song combining extracts of the 19th Century
Xhosa hymn “Nkosi Sikelel’ i-Afrika” (English: ‘God Bless Africa’) and
the Afrikaans song, which was South Africa’s national anthem during the
apartheid era, ‘Die Stem van Suid-Afrika’ (English: ‘The Voice of South
Africa’), with new English lyrics. However, in the country it is mostly sung
by trade unions and political formations during their activities. Worth noting
is that even though most of the senior police officers who were present seemed
not to be bothered, others were heard talking about it. One of the things they
said was that it seemed like the junior officers would not back off.
Charged
The National Commissioner (NATCOM) of Police, William Tsitsibala Dlamini,
charged the 20 junior police with a total of seven counts, which are related to
the delivery of a petition to the Cabinet Offices, among others. The junior
officers are members of the Royal Eswatini Police Staff Association (REPOSA) and
they gathered at Matsapha Police Academy yesterday morning, where they had been
summoned to appear for a disciplinary hearing.
The affected officers are from various police stations across the country and
they include; Malkerns, Bhunya, Lomahasha and Siteki. Others are from Manzini,
Pigg’s Peak, Mbabane, Sidvokodvo, Mliba, Police Academy and Gege. They are;
Sergeant Dumisile Khumalo (4778), Constable B Vilakati (3839), Constable M
Dlamini (4023), Constable Masango (4413), Constable R Dlamini (4421), Constable
D Dlamini (4731) and Constable T Dludlu (4737). Others are Constable Mbhamali
(4849), Constable M Sibiya (4967), Constable Dlamini (5102), Constable Fakudze
(5796), Constable S Gumbi (5800), Constable Ginindza (6013), Constable Matse
(6030) and Constable S Dlamini (6072). Also Constable K Dlamini (6218),
Constable Masuku (6424), Constable M Mkhwanazi (6956), Constable R Nxumalo
(7631) and Constable M Khumalo (7990).
During their disciplinary hearing, the junior officers are said to have raised a
concern that they were served with letters, which contained charges that did not
relate to them. This was confirmed by REPOSA Secretary General Sergeant Dumisile
Khumalo, who said the matter was postponed to December 21, 2022 due to the
concerns they raised. She said the charges as reflected in their letters were
seven in total, but some of them were slapped with only two of them. She stated
that the officers said they should have been served with letters that had
charges which related to them.
As such, the secretary general said the presiding officer postponed the matter
as they had to amend the charges in the junior officers’ letters.
It is worth noting that the police staff association secretary general had
mentioned that there were names of officers who had also been charged, yet they
were not part of those who delivered petitions, among other counts. She also
highlighted that despite having been suspended from work, they would not stop
demanding their money under the Phase II salary restructuring exercise.