MBABANE:Prince Mhlabuhlangene, the Chairman of the Elections and Boundaries Commission(EBC) has, warned the Institute for Development Management(IDM) on alleged move to dismiss Cebisa Motsa, an Information Technology(IT) Technician who has been summoned to a disciplinary hearing merely for participating in the recent Tinkhundla national elections.
This comes after this publication reported earlier on Saturday that Baipidi Karabo,the Acting Director of the Institute of Development Management(IDM)Eswatini was intensifying a move to dismiss the IT Technician merely for participating in the recent national elections, King Mswati commanded and encouraged emaSwati to participate in the elections.
“You participated in political national elections without relinquishing your employment at IDM this in breach of policy 3HRP 01 clause 3.13.2”, reads the charge sheet in part.
Efforts to reach the IDM Country Director proved unsuccessful as he had not responded to our questionnaire.
Reached for comments by this Swaziland News,Cebisa Motsa, the IDM Technician who was nominated as Kwaluseni Member of Parliament(MP) declined to comment about the matter,pending the disciplinary hearing.
“I can’t comment about the matter as I’m yet to appear for a disciplinary hearing”, said the IDM Information Technology(IT) Technician.
Responding to this Swaziland News on the subject matter, Elections Commission Chairman Prince Mhlabuhlangene said, the decision or policy of the IDM violates the civil liberty of the employee.
“Nkhosi, one was not aware of such a matter. And if the facts are as according to the presentation you provided, then on the face of it, it would most certainly, be a case where the policy of IDM on political participation, allegedly violates the fundamental civil liberty of the employee LiSwati charged, which would be unconstitutional and undemocratic under the Tinkhundla Political System of government obtaining under the laws of the country”, said the EBC Chairman.
The Elections Commission Chairman further clarified that, the reasons for the above opinion was that, at the heart of the country’s “democratic electioneering and/or political office contestation,is individual merit” by nomination.
“As such one does not nominate themselves,but contestants are put up for contestation by their fellow community members, whereafter, the nominated candidate then exercises their political participation bundle of both rights and duties in accepting to stand for the nomination or rejecting it. Needless to say that, once nominated, the call to serve the Nation of the nomination, ordinarily creates at best a legal and/or moral political duty or obligation in the least, on any patriotic LiSwati, to indeed stand as nominated, in honor of the nomination and most importantly, in the exercise of one’s constitutionally guaranteed right to democratic political participation under the Tinkhundla Political System of government, as well as even under the country’s broader Monarchical Democracy system of governance. Under, the country’s existing constitutionalism, democratic participation political rights, such as the one at issue in the matter, remains inviolable and fully justiciable in being protected and upheld. As, such, it would seem legally inconceivable to sustain a charge on any LiSwati national and/or citizen for exercising any of their civil liberties or political participation rights conferred, guaranteed and protected under the country’s constitution of 2005. Every other, law or policy rights and duties, are all subordinated to constitutional rights and obligations. This is the natural constitutional law pecking order of rights and obligations for all and institutions, in the country, except the Monarchical Sovereign Authority, who is constitutionally conferred with legal immunity as the Sovereign, law giver above the constitution. As such it would not only be unfair, but also illegal constitutionally, undemocratic and unpatriotic, to say the least, to purport to charge any LiSwati as alleged, for political participation in the country’s general elections under the Tinkhundla Political system of government, as stated above”, said the Elections Commission Chairman.
Elections Chairman Prince Mhlabuhlangene.