MBABANE: King Mswati’s Government is struggling to secure about R2billion to increase salaries for junior officers to at least fifteen thousand Rands(R15,000.00) per month.
Mswati, an absolute Monarch with Executive, Judicial and Legislative powers, enjoys a lavish lifestyle in a country where about 70% of the population leaves below the poverty line.
The King owns four(4) jets, two of the jets were recently purchased with public funds for his Royal Eswatini National Airways Cooperation(RENAC).
It has been disclosed that junior police officers were supposed to start earning around fifteen thousand Rands(R15,000.00) per month as a salary on or around April 2014.
But,over R100 million being part of the money that was budgeted for Phase Two(2) was allegedly looted by senior police officers who created over twenty(20) Deputy and Assistant Commissioners posts,and subsequently shared the money among themselves through salary increments.
Currently junior officers earn around twelve Thousand Rands(R12,000.00) and the delayed increase when calculated with the about six thousand(6000) police officers in the country suggests that Government now needs over R1.7billion to resolve the ongoing crisis within the Royal Eswatini Police Service(REPS).
The R1.7 billion covers the proposed increased salaries and a back-pay under Phase Two(2) that was supposed to be implemented in April 2014.
As a result, King Mswati’s Government is now owing each junior police officer over two hundred and eighty thousand Rands(R280,000.00) as a taxable back-payment.
This week, junior police officers invaded the Police Headquarters and locked the gate as tension escalates within the police service.
Government offered to pay four(4) percent increment that amounts to a mere four hundred Rands(R400) with a back-payment of less than three thousand Rands(R3000), the offer was vigorously rejected by the members of the law enforcement agency.
Reached for comments earlier this week, Sergeant Dumsile Khumalo, the Secretary General of the Police Staff Association said the police invaded the Police Headquarters and locked the gate as a warning that they were serious, they wanted their money.
“We can confirm that junior officers locked the gates but the senior officers later unlocked it.For now, the junior officers are just sending a warning sign that they want their money,”said the Secretary General of the Police Staff Association.
Indeed, subsequent to the locking of the Police Headquarters, on Thursday, junior police officers invaded the home of Prime Minister Cleopas Dlamini, they are demanding a salary increment under Phase Two(2).
A questionnaire was sent to Alpheous Nxumalo, the Government Spokesperson, however, he had not responded at the time of compiling this report.
Reached for comments, human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko, the Chairperson of the pro-democracy MultiStakeholder Forum(MSF) said regardless of the amount, estimated to be close to R2 billion, by law, the money belonged to the officers and they must be paid.
“Regardless of the amount, by law, Government must pay these police officers because they agreed to pay them in 2014. This country is very rich and can afford to increase the salaries for junior police officers including the back-payment. We don’t want a situation where a Government intentionally renders its workers poor with senior officers and those in power becoming rich at the expense of others,” said the MSF Chairperson.
King Mswati