MBABANE: The resignation of Army Commander Jeffery Shabalala will weaken King Mswati’s military, Swaziland News editor Zweli Martin Dlamini told the British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC) this week.
Dlamini said the resigned Army Commander had his supporters within the military and there was a possibility of a serious division within the State Security agency.
“An Army General is a very powerful person particularly in as far as the State security is concerned. The General Army Commander was the head of the State security, he was instrumental in planning and the killing of civilians, so you know that as a General he had his own supporters within the army and the security agencies. So if he resigns or forced to resign, obviously, we might see a power-struggle within the army and the law enforcement agencies. He carries the secrets of the King, not only the King but the whole system of the government, so we are yet to see what might happen thereafter”, said the editor.
The Army Commander announced his resignation on Monday this week after this publication released electronic evidence that implicates the King in the killing of civilians, plot to assassinate the editor and the arrest of pro-democracy Members of Parliament(MPs) being Mduduzi 'Bacede' Mabuza, Mthandeni Dube and Mduduzi ‘Magawugawu’ Simelane.
The evidence obtained by this publication’s investigation unit came after a high level investigation that was targeting heads of the three armed forces in the midst of the political tension.
Resigned Army Commander