Times Of Swaziland: PUDEMO COULD SPLIT

PUDEMO COULD SPLIT
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Mfanukhona Nkambule on 26/10/2024 07:52:00


I envy political scientists.
They have the ability to predict political future developments. Basically, they
studied political philosophy and political behaviour and identities. They are
not gods, but they can foresee things and form an impression. I am not one of
them. Nevertheless, I like them. We need them in society to guide and correct us
so that we are always relevant to the times. Party splitting, floor-crossing,
defecting and switching happen around the world. Even though I am not a
political scientist, there are clear signs that something unpleasant within the
People’s United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO) is going to happen.  It may
happen before the end of the year. The movement, established in 1983, is under
siege. Certain members of PUDEMO established the Communist Party of Swaziland.
Established
Perhaps, they are used to it, but the division currently obtaining among members
of PUDEMO will result in an unfathomable split. Busie Mayisela, a senior member
for the Swaziland Liberation Movement (SWALIMO), also established a new party
styled Swazis First Democratic Front (SFDF). The juxtaposition or comparisons of
the leadership styles of Mandla Hlatshwayo, one of the founding fathers of
PUDEMO and Mlungisi Makhanya, the current President, is a ruse that can distract
one’s thinking from the core issue. It is a fact we cannot easily denounce
that PUDEMO has some members who see Hlatshwayo, my uncle (malume), as a
political leader who can be the movement’s face at a time when the party’s
ratings have just slipped down terribly. I have to declare my interest. My
mother is a Hlatshwayo and Makhanya’s mother is a Nkambule.
The leadership styles of malume and mzala are not the issue here, but PUDEMO
members share sharply contrasting ideologies that will undoubtedly result in the
split. I have done my home work and discovered that the ‘left’ within PUDEMO
are of the view that the ‘right’ should adopt a certain approach to the call
for political reforms in Eswatini while the ‘right’, which is mostly made up
of those who are in exile, strongly believe that the ‘left’ must leave the
country for exile. They believe that the left is obstructing the course for
liberation. In fact, the  ‘left’ is now convinced that the right is a cult.
In April 2024, I intercepted a document with letterheads ‘similar’ to those
of PUDEMO, which caused commotion among members of the organisation.  I can
state with conviction that the document was crafted by certain members within
the ‘right.’ Before I analysed the paper in detail, it is important that I
give a brief background of PUDEMO, which, as a newspaper, we published in 2022.
A group of students at the University of Eswatini came together in July 1983 to
form PUDEMO) to protect Queen Regent Dzeliwe.
The protection and re-installation of the deposed Regent was among a list of
other demands that the students made in their earlier marches, dubbed the
‘Dzeliwe Demonstration’ in August 1983. The gathering of the students was
conducted behind the scenes, and it later transpired that the group, though
formed at the backdrop of Queen Dzeliwe’s deposition as Regent, was actually
the foundation of PUDEMO. More demonstrations followed as the Queen Regent
Dzeliwe challenged her removal, by filing an urgent application at the High
Court. PUDEMO was eventually launched on January 1985. By that time, it already
had a working constitution, a programme of action and a manifesto.
While the first goal of the manifesto indicated that the organisation was
calling for a constitution of a multiparty democracy system, goal number nine
indicated that the organisation intended to promote and develop the rich
heritage of Eswatini culture. The clause further highlighted that Eswatini law
and custom would be codified and published for general information of the public
and cultural institutions would be open for all. The political stand of the
movement regarding the monarchy has always been a subject for debate over the
years, as different leaders gave different versions of their interpretation of
the manifesto. Meanwhile, the document in circulation, which the PUDEMO
executive, disowned, suggested new strategies and ideologies that the movement
was known to have discarded in the past.
It is stated in this paper that PUDEMO should disappear from the public eye and
stop operations in Eswatini. The thinkers within the movement are of the view
that all executive members should go into exile. They are of the view that
PUDEMO must operate underground from exile.Interestingly, the thinkers and
strategists suggested that the organisation should use secret strategies to take
over Parliament. The executive told me that the national executive committee
(NEC) never adopted such a document. But, it does exist and it is in circulation
to date.  Some PUDEMO members alleged that it was possible it was crafted by
those who are already in exile. The document prescribes policies for the
movement that are sharply contrary to its last year’s resolution to boycott
anything to do with Tinkhundla System of Government. It contains ideas that draw
PUDEMO members close to Tinkhundla System of Government.
It is titled ‘PUDEMO Operational and Survival Strategy.’
It is mentioned in this document that PUDEMO did not have to participate in last
year’s general election but ‘it does need to take over the August house and
turn it into a site of struggle.’ The strategy borders on infiltration,
radicalisation and agitation. To take over Parliament, it is mentioned in the
document that PUDEMO should achieve this goal through covert infiltration via a
structure that should not be known by the public and the regime that it had
links with the party. There is a suggestion that the movement should get closer
to the enemy through pushing for dialogue against its narrative that it
(dialogue) has been concluded.
Investigations by the Times of Eswatini SUNDAY uncovered that some PUDEMO
members suspected that a certain “scholar” could be behind the document.
Other members suspected that ideological proponents of the Tinkhundla System of
Government could be sowing seeds of discord within PUDEMO. I realised that there
is confusion within the party. It is now divided into two camps.  Another theory
is that members of a certain political organisation crafted the document. There
is also a strong belief that members of the organisation in exile authored the
paper.
Relocate
Members opposed to the ideas expressed in the paper told me that the suggested
organogram that the national working committee should immediately relocate to
exile, set up an official office there and permanently operate from there
triggered a lot of thinking and suspicion. “The person or persons who crafted
the document received funding, it’s my suspicion. It’s possible we have
PUDEMO members who think like that,” the long-serving member of the
organisation confided in me. The document spells out that the national working
committee must be the only “known” members of the movement and “all other
national structures must disengage from public duties of the organisation and
strictly operate underground.
The PUDEMO regional working committee must immediately disengage from all public
PUDEMO work and retreat to underground alongside all its underlying structures
including the leagues and branches,” this is one of the proposed directive
that does not sit well with the other faction of the movement. According to the
document, PUDEMO inside Swaziland (Eswatini) must cease to publicly exist as a
party. It is stated that all open and public PUDEMO work shall be carried out by
the national working committee from exile using information provided by the
underground regional structures within the country.
The new strategy spells out how the organisation must operate in the media
space, with restrictions having been put forth for consideration. The document
states that there should be no more publicising of PUDEMO work by any structure
or individual under any circumstances. However, the national working committee,
using its own intelligence to determine what should or what should not be
publicised; shall be responsible for the entity’s publicity. In its pursuit
for publicity, it has been proposed that the national working committee shall
strongly consider that underground structures and individuals within Swaziland
(Eswatini) must be protected at all costs.
Pertaining to the implementation of the strategy, four tactics are to be
employed as follows:
*Organisationally, go underground and into self-exile. 	*Centralise
organisational power and operate a bit more dictatorially to obliterate factions
and shorten the chain of command. 	*Get closer to the enemy through pushing for
dialogue against its narrative that dialogue has been concluded. 	*Self-censor
the name and symbols of the movement inside the country to protect membership.
On the other hand, the clique proposing the new approach to the ‘struggle’
has explained why it crafted the document whose objectives are to:
*Advise PUDEMO about the urgent need to adapt to the imminent situation that
shall be presented by the full implementation of the Suppression of the
Terrorism Act (STA). 	*Suggest possible steps that may be taken immediately to
prepare the organisation for the inevitable repercussions of the STA. 	*Raise
the serious need for the organisation to strengthen itself, survive under the
conditions and most importantly lead the National Democratic Revolution (NDR
from the imposed shadows. 	*Influence the organisation towards the ‘Value
Added Approach’ to the struggle, especially since it is not waging a military
struggle but a peaceful one. 	*Advance the NDR through building a strong,
resilient and capable PUDEMO.
It is said that the document seeks to reform the PUDEMO organogram from that of
a public organisation into one that suits an underground movement. I spoke to
Penuel Malinga, the Secretary General of PUDEMO, Brian Sangweni, the National
Spokesperson and Maxwell Dlamini, the Deputy Secretary General, about this
document. They said it did not represent the ideologies of the organisation and
it was not adopted by the NEC. They said only the NEC could release PUDEMO
documents.
They said the Political and Ideological Department did not sanction this
document to be discussed at branches through the NEC.They said the policy
conference neither discussed it nor embraced it.  However, I was reminded of
this document this week, realising in the process that it is highly possible
that PUDEMO is on the verge of the split. Proponents of the Tinkhundla System of
Government celebrate each time there are problems within the party.  The main
undoing about Tinkhundla is that they lack a think-tank that studies patterns
and strengthens the political system to stay relevant to the current times.
Tinkhundla proponents are relaxed. They always react to situations, and have not
been proactive to ensure stability and impressive rating of their own political
system.
With PUDEMO showing signs of failure, it would have been a better time to
regroup, refocus and fine-tune the political system so that it pays dividends in
times of need.  These are interesting times, I am watching.