I AM NOT BITTER - ESTHER

MBABANE – “I am not bitter.” Her exit in the ongoing national elections last Saturday has been the talk of town in the past few days but former Mbabane East Member of Parliament Esther Dlamini, insists she is not bitter.

Dlamini shockingly crashed out of the elections after losing to teacher and former Sihlangu Semnikati Head Coach Harries ‘Madze’ Bulunga. Bulunga recorded a landslide victory after amassing 1 494 votes while the former legislator could only manage 736.
“I am not bitter about losing in the Primary Elections because I feel it is an achievement that God gave me the opportunity to be in Parliament for three terms, where I even served as deputy Speaker twice,” she said.

She said she was proud that in the three consecutive terms in Parliament, she worked hard and exited on a clean slate and was never found to have committed any crime.
According to Dlamini, she conducted herself in an appropriate manner while in Parliament and never broke the law or engaged in corrupt acts.

“My heart is at peace because there was never a time where I was accused of using resources illegally. I was never at any point arrested for any criminal act. Ngiphume ephalamende anginabala,” she said in vernacular which means, “I came out clean”.
Elaborating, she said even when there was an investigation into her work, she came out clean as investigators cleared her name.
Asked if she would consider giving the election another try after the five years, she said she would not say anything for now as she did not know what the future holds for her.

Encouraging

“It will depend on how I feel. For now, I think I am okay but you never know what might happen as time goes on. Already, some people are encouraging me to set sights on the female candidates who will be elected in terms of the Election of Women Members to the House of Assembly Act, 2018 but I am still thinking about it,” she said.
She explained that there was also no way in which she would rejoin her employer, the Royal Eswatini Police Service, due to her age.
Even though she did not divulge her age, the mandatory retirement age for civil servants is 60.

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