‘OBAMA’ DEMANDS E3M FROM GOVT

MBABANE – Lucky ‘Obama’ Matsenjwa is now suing government a sum of E3 million.

He claimed that during his incarceration, he was assaulted by officers from His Majesty’s Correctional Services and as a result, he suffered injuries on his leg and head.

He further alleged that while he was detained in the facility, he also suffered abuse at the hands of Correctional Services officers.

Matsenjwa alleged that after the assault, he was placed in solitary confinement.

Compensation

Through his lawyers from MLK Ndlangamandla Attorneys, Matsenjwa has caused to be issued a demand to government, where he wants to be  paid the sum of E3 million as compensation for pain and suffering, medical costs, loss of dignity and for future medical costs.

He contended that the assault and abuse was a violation of his right to dignity and protection from inhumane and degrading treatment.

 While he was still incarcerated, Matsenjwa once moved an urgent application seeking the court’s intervention and/or protection, claiming that there was a clandestine move to kill him in prison.

In the application, which was filed by his then attorney Sipho Gumede, Matsenjwa was also seeking an order directing the commissioner of His Majesty Correctional Services and/or her subordinates to remove him from solitary confinement with immediate effect and place him in any holding cell within the Zakhele Remand Centre.

Matsenjwa was further praying for an order interdicting the warders from assaulting him while still under their custody.

He also wanted the court to also interdict the warders from threatening him with death.

Narrating events leading to him being isolated from other prisoners, Matsenjwa stated that on December 17, 2018 around noon, he was removed from the cell he had been detained in at Zakhele Remand Centre. 

He said the senior officer who carried out his removal from the cell was King Maseko.

“I was taken to a cell where I was put under solitary confinement. I was not given reasons for the removal. At around 8pm on December 17, 2018; officers came to where I was detained and heavily assaulted me,” submitted Matsenjwa.

According to Matsenjwa, the officers were using batons to assault him.

He told the court that during the assault he screamed “inyandzaleyo”.

Screaming 

Matsenjwa explained that while he was screaming, some inmates from the other cells nearby started shouting at the officers that they were hearing that he was being assaulted.  

He alleged that the officers then stopped assaulting him.

“I sustained injuries on my left leg. The injuries were observed by my attorney Sipho Gumede when he came to check on me on December 18, 2018,” said Matsenjwa.

He informed the court that for the past months, he had been receiving threats from one of the senior officers. Matsenjwa stated that he was now aware of the senior officer’s particulars but he heard that he was a Mr Zwane.

Zwane, according to Matsenjwa, had been threatening that he was going to ensure that he died in custody.

These are allegations whose veracity is yet to be tested in court.

Matsenjwa further alleged that he was also refused an opportunity to be attended to by a medical practitioner to the injuries, he sustained when he was being assaulted.  

According to Matsenjwa, after he was assaulted by the warders, he requested to see a doctor to attend to the injuries but the senior officer allegedly refused.

“I have on two occasions found my food items in the form of juices with punched holes. There has been allegations that, some of the officers wanted to poison me,” alleged Matsenjwa.

He said, while he was in the bigger cell, he would request those next to him to guard his food while he went to see his visitors.

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