By Bongiwe Dlamini

MBABANE:Prime Minister(PM) Russell Mmiso Dlamini who attended the Workers Day Celebration at the Prince of Wales Sports Group on Wednesday,did not come with a solution on how his administration will create jobs for workers but instead, he urged nurses and teachers to build their own clinics and private schools in order to make money.

This is contained in a written statement that was supposed to be delivered by the PM on Wednesday, the Prime Minister(PM)had to flee for safety after being stopped by angry workers from addressing the May Workers Day Celebration.

“On this May Day, I would like to make propositions that will transform our lives as workers.Primarily, I would like to motivate that we can be better than where we are today and our future can be brighter if we maintain the right mindset. Workers, for instance, can build their own banks that will enable us to access finance at low rates. Through these banks, we can lend even to our employers and charge them reasonable interest rates. Teachers can build private schools and make a decent living from that, just as we have other international schools in the country. Nurses can build private clinics and hospitals and make a decent living from that as well”, said the Prime Minister(PM).

The sentiments of the PM comes amid a collapsed health and education system in the midst of corruption in the public administration and royal extravagant spending.

Reached for comments by this Swaziland News on Monday afternoon Wander Mkhonza,the Secretary General of the Amalgamated Trade Union of Swaziland(ATUSWA) criticized the statement of the Prime Minister, saying privatization of basic services like health and education will not improve the wellbeing of the people.

“While we agree that workers must everyday work on improving their financial independence, we as workers do not agree with the views of Prime Minister on workers building private clinics and private schools precisely because we don't believe that privatisation basic necessities like health and education improves the general wellbeing of our people. Private institutions do not work on a mandate to improve lives but work to make profits and the detrimental of those that do not have the means. It is therefore wrong for government to suggest that workers must build businesses that would somehow replace the social responsibility of government”, said the well-known unionist.