Home | News | MGWAGWA EVICTED ME - WIDOW

MGWAGWA EVICTED ME - WIDOW

Font size: Decrease font Enlarge font

MBABANE - Chief Mgwagwa Gamedze has been taken to court by a widow from his constituency over a piece of land.


The widow, Betty Mamba nee Gamedze, claims that the chief had evicted her and her family of 12 from a piece of land which she had been using to cultivate a variety of crops.


The chief, according to the widow, wants to use the land as a burial site for the community of Madlenya in Siphofaneni. Chief Mgwagwa is the former Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.


“It is unfortunate that I am a widow, the first respondent (Chief Mgwagwa) is taking advantage of that since it is the first time I am subjected to such kind of treatment in the hands of umphakatsi, something which never happened while my husband was alive,” she said in her court papers.
She averred that, the chief’s conduct was inhumane and a violation of her rights. Betty now wants the High Court to interdict the chief or anyone acting on his authority and instruction from entering and/or removing the fencing on the field.


Compliance


The applicant (widow) further wants the court to direct members of the Royal Eswatini Police Service to ensure compliance with the order in the event it was granted by the court. Giving a background of the matter, the widow stated that in or around the year 1971, with her husband, they moved out of her marital homestead and went to khonta at Madlenya. She alleged that they followed all the processes required hence they were allocated a piece of land where they established their homestead.


“Consequently, as custom demands, two separate pieces of land were allocated to us, in which, we cultivated crops varying from cotton to maize, depending on the amount of rainfall received that season.

We donated one of the fields to a scheme for sugar cane farming which we have as a community,” submitted Betty. She alleged that they had been using the land without any interference of any nature from Madlenya Umphakatsi or any other person in the entire community. The widow claimed that at the present moment she was maintaining a family of 12 members including herself.


Allegations


These are allegations contained in an affidavit whose veracity is still to be tested in court and the chief is yet to file his responding papers.
The widow narrated that she was shocked in the month of November 2018, when a certain Lunga from the same area, who is a community police member, came to inform her that he had come to deliver a message from umphakatsi.

  Langa, according to the widow, informed her that the umphakatsi had sent him to inform her that she must desist from using that field henceforth as it (umphakatsi) was retaining it for the purpose of turning it into a cemetery site. Betty said she told Langa that such was impossible since she was not consulted by the umphakatsi of its intention to retain that piece of land.


“We did not take the message seriously, as we were of the view that the umphakatsi will summon us to discuss its intention regarding that piece of land and if we reach an agreement we will be allocated an alternative piece of land to use,” alleged the widow.


She told the court that on December 2, 2018, she was eventually summoned by the umphakatsi and upon arrival, to her surprise, Chief Mgwagwa minced no words when telling her that the piece of land had now been retained by the umphakatsi with immediate effect.


“Still confused about what the chief has told me, on December 3, 2018, a truck ferrying a number of people from the area entered the field in question and remove pipes, water containers and two sprinklers. They went to deliver same to the umphakatsi without informing us,” alleged the widow.

Comments (0 posted):

Post your comment comment

Please enter the code you see in the image: