ELECTORATE HAVE POWER TO SUMMON MPS – SOME CHIEFS

MAPHALALENI – Some chiefs believe the electorate have the power to summon a Member of Parliament if they feel they no longer serve them in the august House.

Interestingly, both chiefs are from royal kraals under Maphalaleni Constituency where, Mabulala Maseko is a Member of Parliament (MP). The chiefs claimed that they had sleepless nights since they heard about the call for change by some MPs. The change that these MPs want relates to the appointment of the prime minister (MP). They want the PM to be elected by the people so that he/she could be accountable to them. Chief Mashila Dlamini said as far as he was concerned, chiefs had powers to summon legislators to answer before the electorate as and when the need arose.

King

This, he said was because elections, which started with nominations, commenced at the royal kraals which were administered by the chiefs on behalf of the King. “Whenever the King commissions the Elections and Boundaries Commission to lead elections for MPs, he always makes it clear that he wants people with integrity so that they can form government. I believe that as chiefs, we have powers to summon MPs to the royal kraals if the electorate deem it fit to recall them,” Dlamini said. Dlamini said chiefs had a responsibility to ensure that their subjects followed the will of the electorates as opposed to formulating their own ideas when they got to the august House. He was speaking in relation to the call for change by Siphofaneni MP Mduduzi Simelane, Hosea MP Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Ngwempisi MP Mthandeni Dube. The trio is calling for the amendment of the Constitution, wherein they want the people to have a say in the appointment of PM.

The trio wants the prime minister to be elected by the people, starting from the royal kraal to the regional level. The MPs believe that the election of the premier by the people would end the alleged abuse of power in the name of higher authorities. They stated that they did not believe that people were appointed to higher positions to frustrate emaSwati as it happened in the past. Dlamini asked how could MPs who had been elected to form government, which was led by an appointed prime minister call for change.  “Is that what the electorate from Hosea, Siphofaneni and Ngwempisi sent them to do in Parliament?” asked Dlamini. It will be better if what the trio is doing is what their electorate sent them to do,” he said. He said Maphalaleni Royal Kraal was ready to take action if they received a complaint about their MP. However, he said the royal kraal was pleased by the constituency team starting from bucopho, indvuna yenkhundla to the MP. He said chiefs had the responsibility to call their subjects to order if they went astray.

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