Times Of Swaziland: THABANI’S FAMILY REQUESTED POLICE PROTECTION

THABANI’S FAMILY REQUESTED POLICE PROTECTION
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Phiwase Phungwayo on 26/05/2021 08:44:00


LOBAMBA –Government says the late Thabani Nkomonye’s family wrote to it,
asking for police protection during their son’s memorial service.
This was shared by Acting Prime Minister Themba Masuku in his ministerial
statement during the urgent sitting with MPs in the House of Assembly yesterday.
Worth noting is that during Nkomonye’s memorial service which was held at St
Paul’s last Friday, police officers reportedly arrived and fired teargas at
the mourners. There was public uproar that followed, where locals questioned why
police allegedly disturbed the proceedings. However, the acting PM stated that
it was Nkomonye’s family that requested for police protection. Masuku recalled
that the country had witnessed events of grave concern following the death of
Nkomonye, whose death had led to allegations of improper conduct levelled
against the police. Masuku stated that government took these allegations
seriously as it had a duty to fully protect the lives of all emaSwati, a right
it held sacrosanct.
Unfortunate
“The events of the memorial service are quite unfortunate as they came at a
time when the family had written to government specifically asking for police
protection as they wanted to keep such a solemn occasion peaceful without
violence of any kind,” said Masuku. He said it was unfortunate that this event
was eventually turned into a violent scene, hurting the family who were in grief
and attracting people who were not related to the family as well. Masuku
appealed to Mavimbela that all parliamentarians used appropriate forums when
addressing concerns of national interest as government sought to foster the
spirit of unity while pursuing the truth.
Masuku stated that government had also engaged the Nkomonye family to pass its
condolences and pledged its support and counselling in their common pursuit to
get to the bottom of the matter. “I have personally spoken to Thabani’s
father to convey the same and we are in agreement that we all want the truth to
reveal itself to ensure that action is taken against any offenders, if there are
any, and for the family to find closure,” Masuku said.