Times Of Swaziland: NTUTHUKO LETTER: KING’S OFFICE  SAYS IT’S TABOO!

NTUTHUKO LETTER: KING’S OFFICE  SAYS IT’S TABOO!
================================================================================
 BY SITHEMBILE HLATSHWAYO on 27/10/2020 01:40:00


MBABANE – The King’s Office says it is not interested in the letter of
apology written by murder suspect Ntuthuko Dlamini.
The former Minister of Public Works and Transport stands accused of the murder
of two people and attempted murder.
He is alleged to have shot three members of the Luyengweni Royal Kraal as a
result of a land dispute at Mhlabubovu on September 7, 2020.
Two of the shot members, Sikhulu Shongwe and Themba Malungisa Tsabedze, died on
the spot while Simon Dlamini survived.
The King’s Office has denied receiving the letter purportedly written by 
Ntuthuko for the attention of His Majesty King Mswati III where he was
apologising for the September 7, 2020 incident.
Shock
Chief Officer at the King’s Office Chief Mgwagwa Gamedze expressed shock at
how a member of the public currently in remand could pen a letter to the King.
Gamedze said: “As a citizen of Eswatini, I’ve never heard of any citizen
writing a private letter to Their Majesties. I am not familiar with this at
all.”
When asked if his office had received the letter written by Ntuthuko where he
was apologising to Their Majesties, Gamedze said they had not received it and no
one was allowed to direct a letter to His Majesty as it was unheard of. Gamedze
wondered what Ntuthuko wanted from the King, adding that his office would not
respond to the letter as this matter was being handled by the courts. Further,
he wondered where the letter would be taken to as his office was not interested
in it.
According to our sister publication, the Times SUNDAY, Dlamini wrote the letter
from the confines of the Sidwashini Correctional Services facility where he is
currently kept following his arrest. The letter is said to have been titled;
‘Your Majesty the King and Ingwenyama’ and covered four A4-size pages.
In the letter to the King, Dlamini expressed his wish and request to the Monarch
to consider his case to be a political one.
Death
The former minister is a member of the LaMgabhi Royal Kraal. He stands accused
of shooting two people dead; retired police officer, Shongwe, and pensioned
civil servant Tsabedze, who were both from the Luyengweni Chiefdom that is
involved in a long-standing-boundary dispute with LaMgabhi.
According to the charge sheet, Dlamini is alleged to have shot Tsabedze once in
the chest with a pistol. He is accused of shooting Shongwe four times in the
upper body.
Ntuthuko also faces one charge of attempted murder in that he allegedly shot
Simon three times in the stomach and once in the left arm.
Expressing their opinion on the letter written by Ntuthuko, some legal experts
who preferred to remain anonymous, said it was not prudent for Ntuthuko to make
such a move. This, they said, portrayed him as somebody who was only concerned
about being forgiven by the authorities of the country instead of asking for
forgiveness from relatives of those who were still mourning their loved ones (if
he so believed that he needed to apologise). They further held the view that
Ntuthuko should not jump the gun but instead wait for the wheels of justice to
continue being in motion, adding that he would then clear his name during trial.
The legal counsels also noted that the purported letter that was written by the
former minister could exacerbate a situation which was seemingly calming down
where the shooting incident occurred.
Shooting
It should be noted that Ntuthuko is yet to have his day in court regarding the
shooting incident.
As such, he remains innocent until proven guilty by the courts. In a previous
interview, his lawyer Noncedo Ndlangamandla advised that it would not be prudent
to file a bail application at the present moment for her client. This, she said,
was not in light of the deed but it was just not right at the moment as people
died and they had relatives who should be mourning their death. Ndlangamandla
said it was best to let the people mourn the incident before they could continue
filing a bail application.