SENATE HOPEFUL MABUZA WANTS ELECTIONS STAYED

MBABANE - Thrown into disarray! Senate hopeful Sifiso Nkhundleni Mabuza has filed an urgent application at the High Court for the stay of the elections for the vacant seat in Senate.

What prompted Mabuza to move the application, was the decision by the Eswatini Revenue Authority (SRA) Commissioner General, Dumisani Masilela, to revoke his (Mabuza) Tax Clearance Certificate.
According to the commissioner general, Mabuza failed to, among other things; disclose his certain assets, business activities and income.

Mabuza also wants the court to direct SRA or clerk to Parliament to give him the form of Declaration of Assets, which he was assisted to fill in when standing for the Senate elections within two hours.
He is also praying for an order setting aside the letter revoking his Tax Clearance Certificate.  

Qualified

The applicant (Mabuza) further wants the court to declare that he qualified to stand for the Senate elections slated for today at 2:30pm.
Other respondents in the matter are the Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC), clerk to Parliament, Speaker, national commissioner of police and the attorney general.
In his application, Mabuza narrated that he has been nominated to stand for elections for the vacant seat in Senate. 

He told the court that in line with the provisions of the Constitution, he applied to SRA for a Tax Clearance Certificate certifying that he had paid all taxes due to the authority’s satisfaction.
“I have been subjected to harassment by officers from the  Royal Eswatini Police Service, who went around my properties, took pictures and interviewed some of my tenants, employees and family members,” contended Mabuza.
According to the Senate hopeful, this was allegedly done without his consent.

He claimed that he had not been notified about the alleged intrusion into his private life. Mabuza brought it to the attention of the court that this had been widely reported in the country’s newspapers as well as on social media.
He contended that in all these alleged invasions, the police officers had not sought his permission nor had they called him for an interview or maybe his explanation on any of the information they had obtained against him.
“It appears that the police have not found anything and/or have found certain information which has now led the first respondent (SRA) to revoke my Tax Clearance Certificate to stand for the elections through a letter dated August 3, 2020,” he argued.
The applicant alleged that he received the letter through his employees yesterday.

Investigations

He highlighted that in the letter, SRA commissioner general stated that: “Through further investigations it has been brought to my attention that there was no full compliance on your part with various tax obligations, including but not limited to, disclosure of certain assets and business activities and income therefrom.”

In the letter, the commissioner general said this therefore led him to the conclusion that Mabuza was not up to date with his tax matters and was not tax compliant. Mabuza said the commissioner general then revoked the Tax Clearance Certificate.
“I submit, based on legal advice, SRA has no power to revoke my Tax Clearance Certificate without affording me my constitutional and/or Common Law right to be heard before any adverse decision is taken,” averred Mabuza.
He submitted that the letter that was written by the SRA commissioner general, showed that there was an investigation, however, he was not involved nor made to comment on the information that they had received through their investigations. The matter will be argued today around noon before Judge Cyril Maphanga.

SRA is represented by senior lawyer Sidumo Mdladla while appearing for Mabuza is Derrick Jele of Robinson Bertram. Appearing for the respondents is Assistant Attorney General Mndeni Vilakati.

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