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Prince David removed but crisis escalates at the University of Eswatini(UNESWA).

Wednesday, 22nd March, 2023

When King Mswati in his capacity as the Chancellor of the University of Eswatini(UNESWA)removed Prince David as the Chairperson of the Council,perhaps one would have thought the crisis within the institution of higher learning would be over.

But alas,we are seeing the crisis escalating to a level where some Lecturers are no longer motivated to conduct their duties.

It should be noted that being a Lecturer is not achieved overnight,it comes through hard-work,money and time are invested in studies with the hope of a better life after securing employment.

Lecturers are protesting these days demanding a salary increment and as mentioned in my previous articles,this should worry all parents and the country at large because such developments undermine the quality of education and by extension,social and economic development.

Lecturers are highly educated,it’s not easy for them to just protest on the streets and the strike action suggests that they exhausted all channels trying to have their grievances resolved.

As a result,they found themselves with no alternative,but to protest and voice out their grievances.

It is very unfortunate that in this country,whenever a crisis erupts,the authorities look for a scapegoat instead of solving the problem and in this case,Prince David was ‘crucified’ with the hope that after his removal the problems would be over.

The challenges facing the education system including institutions of higher learning are political but within the University of Eswatini(UNESWA),the crisis is more administrative.

In this regard,there’s an urgent need for an investigation to ascertain the cause of challenges within the University.

King Mswati made a huge mistake when he removed the highly educated Prince David as Chairperson of the Council and subsequently replace him with the ‘unqualified’ Chief Mkhumbi.

UNESWA is one of the key institutions of higher learning in the country that produce human resources to enhance social and economic development,its administration should be based on qualifications not Simohlwana.

It would have been better if Prince David was replaced with an equally educated Chairperson,we have many highly educated men and women in the country and if need be,the King could have sourced a qualified Chairperson from other countries.

Chief Mkhumbi went to University but he doesn’t qualify to be in charge of such a big institution of higher learning.

It should be noted that the ongoing strike action within the University does not only tarnish the image of the institution but reduces the quality of qualifications from that institution.

In light of  the aforementioned,perhaps one can emphasize that we need to treat the crisis within the University of Eswatini(UNESWA) with the seriousness it deserves.

Lecturers must be paid decent salaries so that they can perform their duties to the best interest of the country.


Prince David removed but crisis escalates at the University of Eswatini(UNESWA).
King Mswati.