UNIONS SHOW GOVT THE MONEY

MBABANE – Money is with the army! This was what public sector associations (PSAs) said when they were requested to share an insight on where they thought government was unnecessarily spending money that could be used to cater for their cost of living adjustment.

Government had asked PSAs to state where the money to finance the cost of living adjustment (COLA) would come from. The PSAs are formed by the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), National Public Service and Allied Workers Union (NAPSAWU), the Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union (SWADNU) and the Swaziland National Association of Government Accounting Personnel (SNAGAP).

In separate interviews, three out four members of the PSAs said government had to cut down on army spending among other things. Capital spending was also counted as another area which government had to cut down on.

Based on newspaper reports of promotions at the Royal Swaziland Police (RSP) and His Majesty’s Correctional Services and further recruitment by all the security forces. NAPSAWU President Aubrey Sibiya could not help but wonder which war the country was preparing for. His curiosity stemmed from that such recruitments happened yearly and government budgeted for them.

To some extent, he understood that there was a need for a high number of police officers but was concerned by that the numbers did not serve the purpose as he said most of them were either found conducting speed traps or camped near bars at night. Sibiya said while they did that, the masses were not getting police service. He clarified that he did not mean that people should be allowed to violate traffic laws at will but that police should prioritise other sectors in their line of duty.
“Government wastes money then tells us that there is no money; that is an insult,” he said. Recently our sister newspaper, the Times Sunday reported that 14 luxurious BMW 740i sedans and 80 motorbikes, which cost taxpayers a hefty E29 million, were lying idle at the Matsapha Police College.

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