MPS CARRYING CONSUMERS’ HOPES

Minister of Natural Resources and Energy Prince Lonkhokhela, hit the nail on the head when he advised Members of Parliament (MPs) against discussing the issue of a proposed electricity tariff increase for now.

This is actually something members of the House of Assembly should have known beforehand.After all, such decisions cannot, or rather should not, be implemented without their approval. Last Monday, Prince Lonkhokhela delivered a preamble on this controversial issue in Parliament. He revealed that the Eswatini Energy Regulatory Authority (ESERA), was mandated by the Energy Regulatory Act, 2007, to regulate and approve tariffs, prices and charges. He said since ESERA had requested to embark on a consultative process on the proposed tariff increase, it would be premature for Parliament to discuss the issue.

Opposed

On Friday, one such consultative forum was held at The George Hotel in Manzini, where Eswatini Electricity Company (EEC) representatives and their customers interacted - to use a mild term.Justifying their decision to request a 25.51 per cent tariff increase, EEC Managing Director Ernest Mkhonta said the parastatal had been selling electricity to its customers at a lower price than what they paid the supplier for it. Customers basically opposed the proposal, with one Thandizwe Shongwe saying electricity was already out of reach for many emaSwati, even before the proposed increase.

Lest we forget, the proposed increase would see E100 purchasing only 32 units. Currently, domestic users get 42 units for the same amount.We are a very long way from the days when the prepaid electricity system began, when E100 bought about 100 units. However, I digress. My point was that the minister was correct in saying MPs should not discuss the issue of the tariff increase for now.His advice or should we say request, to the legislators should give them time to do thorough research on the topic and speak from an informed point of view. Besides, by the time they debate the matter, the public would have made their comments and contributions on the topic.

That would make whatever input the legislators have, more relevant. My concern, which I know is the concern of many a liSwati, is that more often than not, MPs raise hell on an issue when it is topical and sometimes without having done due diligence on it. They make their views known and demand answers but once it dies down, they move on to the ‘next big thing’. This makes our Parliament ineffective in playing its oversight role on the executive arm of government.

Had Parliament been effective, we would have long kissed the never-ending health crisis goodbye. Instead, Parliament has become sort of a ‘gossip forum’ where all the Ministry of Health’s dirty linen is hung, without any positive change on the ground. The shortage of medical drugs, painful as it is, has become a norm in this country. EmaSwati go to government hospitals and clinics knowing very well that they will only get a diagnosis and prescriptions. They are lucky to find one or two of the prescribed drugs in stock. This is just painful and unacceptable.

This past week, Parliament was once again the venue for the revelation that most of the medication supplied to health facilities across the country is substandard. Parliament’s Ministry of Health portfolio committee uncovered this in its investigations. Its findings were contained in the Ministry of Health’s Second Quarter Performance Report, which was presented to MPs on Wednesday. Among other things, it was revealed that the drugs supplied to health centres across the country arrive when they are already close to expiring.

This is obviously a health risk and there is a real possibility that they could be dispensed to patients a few weeks before they expire. The medication could also expire shortly after being received by the patient, before it has been used up on treatment. Again, such reports, though shocking and worrying, are not new.Parliament has previously been made aware of the delivery of medication whose expiry dates are close. This was the finding even when the team of Cabinet ministers visited the Central Medical Stores (CMS) shortly after appointment, exactly a year ago.

Parliamentarians should be disappointed in themselves that a year later, such reports are still cropping up. It is an indictment on their effectiveness both as representatives of the electorate and overseers of government policy and direction. A fortnight ago, the same House of Assembly was informed that there was an acute shortage of teachers in many schools around the country.This was contained in the Ministry of Education and Training’s Second Quarter Performance Report tabled by Minister Owen Nxumalo.

Vacant

The ministry conducted inspections in both primary and secondary schools, and found that in some cases, the staff shortages were caused by wrong replacement of teachers by the Teaching Service Commission (TSC). The Commission is apparently unable to fully carry out its mandate of creating new teaching posts and filling vacant ones. The newly-introduced Grade 0 programme was also found to be in disarray, as there were no new classrooms built to accommodate learners. Shockingly, government has employed only 20 teachers for all the 420 schools that have introduced this class. Obviously, this seriously affects the delivery of quality education in our schools. Once again, this is not a new revelation.

The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) has been raising the issue of a shortage of teachers in schools for years. With Parliament fully aware and being updated regularly by the same government, there has been no positive result. In recent weeks, we have praised Parliament for standing its ground on various issues presented by Cabinet ministers, like last month when they rejected an ‘untruthful’ report presented by Public Service Minister Mabulala Maseko, on the controversial salary restructuring for junior security officers.

What remains now is for MPs to ensure that they are not ‘all buck and no bite’ by putting their foot down and ensuring that the never-ending crises in health and education come to an end.
That would raise the confidence of the nation that is already saying the electricity tariff hike will be implemented, no matter what Parliament or the consumers say.

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