MBABANE:Public Service Minister Mabulala made calls to various Ministers on Monday morning informing them that, “Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini is very angry and he doesn’t know what might happened to the PM”.
The Public Service Minister is alleged to have first resisted the Prime Minister’s order directing him to “get out of the PM’s Office”, and soon thereafter, the Prime Minister ordered cops to remove him by force.
It is alleged that, the bone of contention was the Public Service Minister’s conduct to spy the Prime Minister and then share the information with administrators of the Public Service Pension Fund(PSPF) while pretending to be supporting the conversion of the Eswatini National Provident Fund(ENPF) into a National Pension Fund.
The PM first told Maseko that he was supposed to be honest and declare his position or interest in the matter even if it was opposing that of the Prime Minister like other Cabinet Ministers.
“Get out of my Office”, the PM allegedly said before unleashing the police to forcefully remove the Public Service Minister who was in Cabinet with PSPF Board Chairman Samuel ‘Sammy’ Dlamini and Principal Secretary Bheki Bhembe to meet the Prime Minister.
The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the possible signing of a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) between the Public Service Pension Fund(PSPF) and the Eswatini National Provident Fund that seeks to ensure that, the conversion does not collapse the PSPF but complement it.
Reached for comments by this Swaziland News, PSPF Board Chairman Sammy Dlamini wondered how this journalist received such information about things happening inside Cabinet.
“Wena utitsatsaphi letindzaba letingaka, it’s difficult for me to comment Nkhosi as the Public Service Minister is my boss”, said the PSPF Chairman.
Efforts to seek a comment from the Public Service Minister proved unsuccessful at the time of compiling this report.
But Cabinet sources told this Swaziland News that, Minister Mabulala Maseko contacted some of them, enquiring what happened to the PM, as he was visibly angry.
“Ndvunankhulu uvutsa emalangabi ngabe kwentekeni?,” the Public Service Minister told some Ministers after being removed by the police.
Acting Government Spokesperson Thabile Mdluli had not responded at the time of compiling this report.
The Eswatini National Provident Fund (ENPF) is converting to a national pension fund to provide monthly retirement income, moving from the traditional provident fund's lump-sum payment system.
The new fund will aim for greater inclusivity by covering formal and informal sectors, and will operate alongside the Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF).
But this conversion has sparked debate, with concerns about financial sustainability and the potential impact on existing funds, particularly the PSPF.
It has been disclosed that, Cabinet is highly expected to facilitate another meeting where the Provident Fund and the PSPF will sign a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) “that seeks to facilitate a working relationship to ensure that, the establishment of the National Pension Fund does not undermine but complement the Public Service Pension Fund”.
Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini.