Armed police officers must always demonstrate their bravery when facing equally armed criminals not to shoot and kill unarmed civilians and claim to be heroes.
What happened at Siphofaneni Buy Cash Hardware last week where armed police officers ran away as robbers killed Detective Bongani Maphalala who tried to face them suggests that if this country could be invaded by armed criminals, the police officers who are busy shooting and killing unarmed civilians could run away instead of protecting the civilians and their property.
One of the basic duties of police officers is to enforce the law while protecting life and property, but in this country officers are killing pro-democracy civilians, they failed to protect a property at Siphofaneni Buy Cash Hardware, instead, decided to run away.
Now, we know that these officers are shooting citizens with impunity because they know Swazis are not armed, they failed to face and arrest equally armed criminals who forcefully deprived Buy Cash Hardware about two hundred thousand(R200,000.00).
But despite their failure to execute their Constitutional duties, the officers who ran away and failed to protect the life of their colleague Bongani Maphalala received their full salary this month.
At least now, those who are sympathizing with pro-democracy activists know what to do if they want police officers who cross the border to hunt human rights defenders to run away.
Ethically, I am not allowed to mention what should be done to these officers who run away from armed robbers only to hunt unarmed citizens, but the sympathizers, after reading this article, will understand what makes the police to run away.
In this country, people are killed for alleged ritual purposes, political affiliation, criminals are robbing citizens, women and children are raped, then we have police officers who are paraded as heroes merely for killing unarmed protesting civilians.
If these officers decided to run away and failed to protect the property of a Hardware owned by a Cabinet Minister and the life of their colleague Detective Bongani Maphalala, then how can they protect ordinary citizens?.
No wonder these police officers invade homes fully armed when raiding unarmed political activists, these officers are bored, the day they face equally armed criminals, they run away, what a shame!
During the robbery at Buy Cash Hardware, detective Bongani Maphalala demonstrated bravery by facing the armed criminals but his colleagues betrayed him by running away.
This is a clear indication that as this country slowly becomes a lawless State, some police officers will fail to face armed criminals and restore peace and stability.
Then the question is, as taxpayers, why are we paying police officers who fail to protect our lives and property only to kill unarmed civilians?.
It seems the culture of shooting and killing that was promoted by security officers is now adopted in this country and safety of police officers cannot be guaranteed.
Therefore, if peace, stability, law and order is not restored by those who perpetrated this culture of impunity, our country will soon become a jungle State.
Indeed, in a jungle State its either you kill or you are killed, we don’t want that to happen in our beautiful country, we appeal for peace, justice and or the rule of law.
In conclusion and in light of the aforementioned, one would expect that disciplinary measures would be taken against the police officers who failed to protect the life of Detective Bongani Maphalala and the property of Buy Cash Hardware, their conduct to flee amounts to dereliction of duties.
The late Detective Bongani Maphalala.