Times Of Swaziland: SEARCH WARRANTS WERE UNLAWFUL - PPA MEMBERS

SEARCH WARRANTS WERE UNLAWFUL - PPA MEMBERS
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BY MBONGISENI NDZIMANDZE  on 08/01/2020 00:51:00


MBABANE - “The fact that we are being persecuted and prosecuted for expressing
dissatisfaction about the management of public affairs is a violation of the
right of freedom of expression.”
This was one of the submissions made by the four members of the civil and
political organisations who are being investigated by the police.
They also contended that the alleged seditious documents, which led to the
police raiding their homesteads, were not found in their possession.
The four who are being investigated by the police are Sibongile Mazibuko, Musa
Nkambule, Jan Sithole and Wandile Dludlu.
Mazibuko is the leader of the Ngwane National Liberatory Congress (NNLC), while
Nkambule is the Chairman of Sibahle Sinje National Movement.
Dludlu is the General Secretary of the proscribed People’s United Democratic
Movement (PUDEMO) and Sithole is the President of the Swaziland Democratic Party
(SWADEPA)
They all belong to the PPA, which is an association formed by different
political, civil and human rights groups.
In their replying affidavit filed by their lawyer yesterday, the quartet
contended that it would be unlawful and unjust to have them charged, persecuted
and prosecuted on the basis of information and evidence that was allegedly
tainted by unlawfulness.
“The search warrants were unlawful because they did not specify what items the
police were looking for and what offences were being committed by the
applicants,” they argued.
It was further one of their submissions that, the detention orders were equally
unlawful in the same manner and extent to which the search warrants were
unlawful.
Accept
“We are advised and verily accept that the magistrates issued the search
warrants without having fully applied themselves on the matters before them. In
her replying affidavit, Mazibuko argued that the magistrate was wrong to grant
the search and seizure warrant because there was proper application before him.
“We are also advised that the applications that were served before the
magistrates were supposed to be made at the High Court of Eswatini and not
before the magistrates court.”
According to the applicant, the magistrates had no jurisdiction to have
entertained the applications as they allegedly usurped the powers of the High
Court.
“I respectfully state that the search warrants were unlawful as the papers
that were served before the magistrate were in respect of a matter at the High
Court,” argued Mazibuko.
According to the police, the quartet is suspected to have been the architects of
the banner with inscription calling for the fall of the country’s authorities
and introduction of multi-party democracy in the Kingdom of Eswatini.
This is the banner which was displayed during a recent march by members of the
Political Party Assembly (PPA) in Mbabane.
The exact wording of the banner cannot be repeated as it is suspected to be of
seditious nature. According to the law enforcers, they received information from
their (police) Intelligence Department that the homesteads or residences of the
four were places where suspected explosives, seditious documents and information
were kept.
Judge Nkosinathi Maseko, who heard the application, found that it would not be
proper to allow the police to act on the strength of the warrants while the
matter is still pending in court.
The applicants are seeking an order declaring to be unlawful and setting aside
the search warrants that were issued against them dated November 25. and
December 19, 2019.
During the argument of the matter, Assistant Attorney General Mbuso Simelane
informed the court that criminal investigations against the quartet were 95 per
cent complete.
Meanwhile, in his answering affidavit, Deputy National Commissioner of Police
Sam Mthembeni Mthembu denied that the search and seizure warrants against the
applicants were unlawful and unconstitutional.
He averred that the items that were seized from the applicants were taken to the
respective magistrates who issued the warrants.
Mthembu alleged that the magistrates then ordered that the items should be
detained for purposes of assisting the police in furthering their investigations
to the suspected acts of alleged sedition by the applicants.
Challenged
“I have been advised by the officers who executed the search warrants that
none of the applicants challenged the warrants,” contended the senior police
officer.
According to the deputy commissioner of police, the searches and seizures were
conducted on a reasonable ground for suspecting that there was, upon the
premises of the applicants, anything to which there were reasonable grounds for
believing that it would afford evidence as to the commission of the offence or
anything intended to be used for the purposes of committing the offence.
He also told the court that the application to set aside the search warrants was
academic as the search had been conducted.
The matter is still pending in court and it will be argued today.
The State is represented by Assistant Attorney General Simelane and Principal
Crown Counsel Bheki Tsabedze while appearing for the applicants is renowned
human rights lawyer Thulani Maseko.