MBABANE: Wakhile Lukhele, the Secretary General of the Swaziland National Union of Students(SNUS) has ordered Mswati’s Government to remove with immidiate effect the statue of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi or else the youth would vandalize it.
Gandhi's statue was officially unveiled by the High Commission of India this week at the Selection Park in Mbabane, King Mswati was represented by Prince Simelane, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development.
Speaking to this Swaziland News on Wednesday, the Secretary General said they expected the Government to focus on serious issues affecting this country not Gandhi's statues.
“Our parents and other Swazis are dying in hospitals due to the non-availability of drugs. Over 400 nurses were struggling to have their contracts renewed and schools are facing shortage of teachers. But this Government has money to support statues that don't add any value to our lives in this country”, said the Secretary General.
Lukhele said if the Government delays to remove the statue, as the youth, they would use other means to remove it.
“Kunye Nkhosi lana lentfo yabo uma ngabe bayehluleka kuyitfwala, sitawukhona kutsi sibasusele tsine ngetindlela tetfu lesitawukhona kutsi sitisebentise. But vele kufuna kubulawe ku-vandalazwe lentfo ikweshe lapha?(meaning: If they don’t remove the statue, we will remove and vandalize it)”, said the Students Union Secretary General.
The sentiments of the Secretary General were supported by Colani Maseko, the President of the Swaziland National Union of Students(SNUS) who stated that they would only allow statues for freedom fighters and all those who were killed by King Mswati for calling for democratic reforms.
“We are giving them three(3)days to remove that thing”, said the Students Union President.
Efforts were made to the contact Housing and Urban Development Minister Prince Simelane, however, his phone rang unanswered.
Earlier this month, Tamoghna Halder, the Assistant Professor (Economics) in the School of Arts and Sciences at Azim Premji University published an article on Aljazeera criticizing the campaign of portraying and marketing Gandhi to global audiences as an undisputed and all-inclusive icon of non-violent resistance.
The Assistant Professor described this as the most successful propaganda campaign ever carried out by the Indian State.
“On the morning of January 27, a statue of Gandhi was found vandalised in the town of Davis, in the north of the US state of California. It was not immediately clear who sawed the bronze statue off its base and for what purpose, but the condemnations started flowing in right away.Indian media framed the incident as an attack not only on Gandhi but also on the Indian people, and swiftly branded it a hate crime. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, meanwhile, issued a statement to officially condemn the act of vandalism and called upon the US Department of State to investigate the incident”, said the Assistant Professor in an article published on Aljazeera earlier this month.
Efforts to reach the High Commissioner of India for a comment proved unsuccessful at the time of compiling this report.
On another note Colani Maseko, the President of the Swaziland National Union of Students(SNUS) successfully led a campaign to remove Mswati’s pictures from Universities saying the King does not qualify to be a Chancellor.
Students wants Gandhin statue removed at Selection Park, Mbabane.