By Zweli Martin Dlamini

King Mswati delivered one of the most useless speeches during the Official Opening of Parliament last week and,in the middle of his Speech from the Throne, he opted to lead Parliamentarians in a hypocritical prayer thus turning the Honorable House of Parliament into a “Sunday school” with MPs and Senators repeating the prayer after their ‘Sunday school teacher’.

Perhaps, let me clarify and declare that I am a Christian but, against the abuse of religion to manipulate the minds of the people in pushing an oppressive political agenda.

Well in February 2020, I wrote an article titled “King Mswati’s Speech a lie from the Throne” and soon thereafter,I was kidnapped by armed police officers from the premises my home at LaMgabhi eTiyeni, dragged to the Mbabane Police Station where I tortured merely for criticizing a Head of State and doing my job as journalist.

The police officers were commanded by the late Deputy National Commissioner Sam Mthembu who told me during the torture that, as police officers, they will deal with me ensure that I don’t criticize Mswati.

The Deputy National Commissioner subsequently died in January 2021 and I want the now ‘ghost and cruel senior police officer’ to read under a similar headline that, I will criticize the King until the last breath, it’s my duty as a journalist to hold King Mswati and his Tinkhundla cruel and undemocratic Government accountable.

It should be noted that, this country is struggling with one of the highest poverty rates in the world but, we have a dictator who lives an extravagant lifestyle while, and despite the availability of natural resources including minerals in eSwatini, ordinary emaSwati live in squalor.

Reciting well-written but useless Speeches from the Throne will not address the socio-economic ills in this country, a recent Executive Order by newly inaugurated United States(US) President Donald Trump demonstrated clearly that, Tinkhundla is a useless dictatorship regime that relies heavily, on foreign donors for social services while taxpayers or public funds are looted by King Mswati including those who are influential, powerful and politically connected, of course, with ties to the royal family.

It should be further noted that, with about 70% of the population living below the poverty line, eSwatini is one of most unequal countries in the world and in fact, this country should have long declared a failed State.

The health system long collapsed amid shortage of drugs and Donald Trump’s Executive Order will worsen the situation, resulting to the death of more emaSwati some who support the Tinkhundla undemocratic regime.

The University of Eswatini(UNESWA) was collapsed by Mswati and his Tinkhundla regime, he reduced the operational budget for the institution of higher learning including allowances for deserving students.

Worth-noting, eSwatini aspires to be one of the most developed countries in the world while destroying critical institutions that produce skilled human resources for the various industries.

Roads and other key infrastructure that economically enables the development of industries for economic growth and development have been neglected, Government is now collapsing the Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs), forcing indigenous companies to close by delaying to pay suppliers.

But the source to all these social ills in this country could be traced back to King Mswati and his gang of political thieves within the Tinkhundla cruel and undemocratic system of Governance.

Tinkhundla is, and remains a syndicate of thieves therefore, no useless Speech from the Throne will ever sanitize this regime or produce a ‘political make-up’ so that, it could appear legitimate in the eyes of the people including the international community.

A Sovereign State that relies heavily, on foreign donors while taxpayers are looted by the royal family can only exist in the regime’s world of imagination, Tinkhundla is a gang of thieves with no political desire to improve the lives of emaSwati living in poverty.

It is therefore imperative to state that, when some of us see a dictator suddenly acting like a Christian, reciting prayers in public while stealing public funds for his own enjoyment, we have a reason to be worried.

EmaSwati are struggling and they are politically suffocated in the rural areas, schools,Universities and even in business, money is not circulating in this country.

In conclusion, let me once again warn that, this country is being destroyed by the Tinkhundla thieves led by King Mswati, these thieves have adopted a new strategy to recite prayers in public events just to blind the unsuspecting members of the public.

But emaSwati must know that, prayer from Pharisees will not solve the socio-economic ills in this country, Tinkhundla is an undemocratic regime that does not subscribe to the principles of democracy and/or transparency and accountability in the public administration.