Times Of Swaziland: ‘THE MOST DIFFICULT TIME OF MY REIGN’ ‘THE MOST DIFFICULT TIME OF MY REIGN’ ================================================================================ BY ANDILE NSIBANDE on 17/09/2013 02:55:00 MBANGWENI – His Majesty the king said the economic down-turn probably presented the most difficult years of his leadership since he ascended to the throne in 1986. “There was the challenge to reassure a nervous nation that jobs would not be lost, but Swazis proved to be strong and we were able to pull through,” the king said, before saying in every trying situation, there would always be lessons to be derived from it to prepare one for similar occurrences in the future. He said he was, however, proud to have an understanding and caring nation which was not diverted by the situation into doing something else. “In most cases, hunger makes people lose their patience but Swazis were able to accept and be accommodative of the situation, hence we were able to pull out of that hurdle,” he said. Unique Meanwhile, the head of state said this was not a situation only unique to the country. He said facing challenges was part and parcel of life, and one need not despair whenever confronted by difficult situations. “There is always the other side of the coin. Yes, we may have been in a tough situation, but that challenge itself was a learning curve to all of us,” he said.