FESBC APOLOGISES TO NATION, GOVT, MEMBERS

MBABANE – The Federation of Eswatini Business Community (FESBC) has since apologised to the nation, government and its entire membership.

Following the events that unfolded in the past weeks, where FESBC was hogging headlines over alleged unfair competition in the business sector that they alleged were taking place in Eswatini, the federation has committed to dealing with the matter the most professional way, without causing anyone any discomfort. The apology comes after the FESBC’s leadership met with Prime Minister (PM) Russell Dlamini on Tuesday. In a press statement, the federation’s President Henry ‘Tum’ du Pont stated that during the meeting, the premier was with other senior government officials, who included the Deputy Prime Minister (DPM), Thulisile Dladla, and Cabinet’s Principal Secretary Bertram Stewart. The president, in the statement, firstly addressed the narrative that purported that they were linked to proscribed organisations that were also political parties. Noteworthy, the statement that was issued by the PM on Tuesday ordered FESBC to disassociate itself from proscribed entities.

Commitment

The FESBC president, on the other hand, said: “FESBC appreciates the commitment demonstrated by government on current affairs and the economic outlook of the year 2024. As a fully-registered, law-abiding organisation, our position on matters of law is clear; we will make use of any and all legal channels to be able to facilitate the fulfillment of our mandate. It is because of our respect for the rule of law and His Majesty the King Mswati III’s Government, that we assure the nation and related stakeholders that we are not in any way part of the proscribed entities but strictly a business federation with a clear founding constitutional mandate.”

Still on alignments with political parties, FESBC Public Relations Officer (PRO) Paul Matimela also alluded to the fact that FESBC was purely a business federation, with a mission to contribute to the development of a supportive business policy environment, co-ordinating and empowering members for business growth and sustainability, not any political agenda. “It is, however, important to mention that even in business when doing your PESTLE (a tool used to gain a macro picture of an industry environment) analysis the understanding of the political landscape is important and for us it’s a lesson we learnt hard when we watched indigenous businesses going up in flames and ashes. I can safely say FESBC is not associated with any proscribed entity,” he said. The president assured the nation that their safety and security portfolio was not in any way set up to cause conflicts with existing structures of law enforcement in the country. Du Pont said however, it was meant to enhance their effectiveness when it came to commercial or economic-related crimes.

Engage

“It is our commitment to engage with big business in the spirit of creating an enabling economic trading environment in the country. With that in mind, we would like to take this position to apologise to the nation and our members, where we might have been seen otherwise. We would also like to take this opportunity to unequivocally disavow all forms of violence, corruption and unfair competition,” he said. The president also mentioned that they took exception to any form of misrepresentation, which suggested they were anything other than a federation of employers. In the year 2024, du Pont reaffirmed their commitment to business transformation, that which should remain the focal point in the business growth.

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