Times Of Swaziland: ANONYMOUS SMS TO SA ADVOCATE: WITHDRAW FROM MPS’ CASE

ANONYMOUS SMS TO SA ADVOCATE: WITHDRAW FROM MPS’ CASE
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BY NTOMBI MHLONGO on 23/12/2021 10:10:00


MBABANE – Withdraw!
This is a request that has been made to Advocate Gareth Leppan, the South
African man who is representing the State in the case of the two incarcerated
Members of Parliament (MPs), Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube. The
warning has been issued through an SMS which was sent to the advocate by an
unknown person. The SMS has been shared among judicial officers involved in the
matter. The unknown sender first greets the advocate and states that he hopes he
is doing well. He goes on to apologise for interrupting the advocate’s peace.
“May I kindly request that you withdraw from the case of the two MPs in
Swaziland (Eswatini) counsel. I understand there’s a financial gain, but
counsel these are our MPs. Do not be used to persecute our elected MPs. You are
a South African, you enjoy a variety of rights while the limited rights that we
are allowed to enjoy are taken away at whim,” reads part of the SMS. The
sender goes on to detail how in 1996, trade union leaders of the then Swaziland
Federation of Trade Unions (SFTU) were arrested.
“The government hired a Durban- based counsel to prosecute them. When counsel
arrived, he found that the law criminalising the alleged crime had been passed a
day after commission of the crime and the law had been given retrospective
effect. He refused to prosecute. That’s how the SFTU leaders were freed. They
also had done nothing besides calling for democratic reforms just like the
MPs,” the SMS further reads. Furthermore, the sender warned the advocate
against being used by the State and alleged that his participation in the case
was only to give an impression to the international community that the process
was legitimate, transparent and fair because a foreign counsel was involved.
“Don’t be used for this selfish end because history indeed has no blank
spaces. One day we shall remember you for having persecuted the men we love, the
men we look up to, the men who have decided to lose everything for us. But above
it all, your conscience hasn’t left you and I fully appreciate that you will
reflect on this and arrive at the correct determination. Regardless of your
decision, we shall never stop demanding democracy,” it was stated in the SMS.
In the end, the sender wrote an initial believed to be of his name and ended
with a local surname. It was ended with a sign off: S Maseko.
According to some of the judicial officers, who spoke on condition of anonymity,
the SMS was sent using a local cellphone number. It was gathered that the office
of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had already been informed of the
issue. However, when the DPP was called by this reporter on Tuesday, he said he
was yet to check if the matter had been reported. Later on, he stated that he
could not comment as the issue had not been reported to his office. This
publication wanted to ascertain how the DPP’s Office understood the SMS as
some sort of intimidation and what it would do about it, meaning would they
report such to the police for further investigations.
The South African advocate is not new in the country as he is the one who was
tasked with the responsibility of ensuring the conviction of Qing Ming He, who
was accused of killing and kidnapping Matsapha businessman Almor Oliveira.
Corruption
He also represented the State during the corruption case of former Minister of
Justice Sibusiso Shongwe. It should be noted that on Monday, the two
incarcerated MPs were in court to hear their application to compel the Chief
Justice (CJ), Bheki Maphalala, to enrol their urgent bail appeal. The matter was
before Judge Doris Tshabalala yesterday, who after hearing arguments from both
parties, reserved judgment until December 29, 2021. On the day, a sizeable
number of the MPs’ supporters converged at the High Court and police officers
had to fire tear gas to disperse them. This was not the first time that police
had to fire tear gas to disperse supporters of the two MPs.
On December 9, 2021, which was the sixth day of the trial, scenes of chaos
erupted at the entrance of the High Court after the supporters of the two MPs
and members of different political parties blocked the road leading to the High
Court, emptied skips before attempting to forcefully gain entry into the High
Court premises. Police officers from the Operational Support Services Unit 
(OSSU) and those from His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS), who had been
deployed at the entrance of the High Court, had to use tear gas canisters to
disperse the rowdy crowd. The MPs have been in custody since their arrest on
July 25, 2021.
They have been accused of inciting the public to revolt against a
constitutionally established government, bringing hatred to the person of His
Majesty the King and murder.