LIQUOR TRADERS TO PETITION PARLY
MANZINI - Fed up liquor traders and stakeholders will today petition Parliament over the continued ban on alcohol sale.
This resolution was made by the liquor traders during their meeting which was organised by the Swaziland National Liquor Association (SNLA). The gathering was held at The George Hotel yesterday and it was chaired by SNLA Chairman Percy Sigwane and Secretary General Thamsanqa Hlatshwayo.
They said government banned the production, distribution and sale of alcohol in the country on July 1, 2020 and the Prime Minister (PM), Ambrose Dlamini, said the ban would not exceed two months, which ended on August 31, 2020.
Disturbed
In that regard, they said they had anticipated opening their businesses on September 1, 2020. However, they said their plan was disturbed by reports which reflected that Government Spokesperson Sabelo Dlamini said the ban would continue and the nation would be informed timely of any change.
The argument of the liquor traders and suppliers who attended the meeting was that they had explored all available avenues and tried to address the issue with government, through the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade, but all their efforts were in vain. It is worth noting that recently, they wrote to the PM’s Office for its intervention in the matter.
In that regard, they said according to their analysis, government was not willing to listen and consider their proposals, which they had been tabling at the round table, thus they planned to take the matter to parliamentarians.
When they discussed the petition, which would be delivered by representatives of the liquor traders and other stakeholders, they said it should be addressed to Speaker Petros Mavimbela.
They said it should state clearly that their demand was that the Clerk to Parliament, Ndvuna Dlamini, should, with immediate effect, call a sitting of parliamentarians to intervene in the reopening of the liquor industry in the country. They said this would be as per the PM’s statement, which he issued on June 23, 2020 in reference to the COVID-19 pandemic, where government stopped the production and distribution of liquor with effect from July 1, 2020 for a period not exceeding two months.
The liquor traders and suppliers said the petition should also state that their call for parliamentarian’s intervention was due to the fact that the ban as announced by the PM elapsed on August 31, 2020. However, they said government, through its Press Secretary Sabelo, publicly declared that the ban was still in force.
“This has created a public dilemma as no gazette has been issued to that effect by the PM,” they argued.
Again, they said as a business community and particularly in the liquor industry, they had planned and organised to resume operations on Tuesday, September 1, 2020 as per the government public statement. They argued that developments which came with the government press secretary statement were unfair to them as they had been compliant and committed to adhering to all COVID-19 regulations stated by government, in line with the World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines.
Intervention
They added that as they sought the intervention of the Members of Parliament (MPs), it should be noted that a majority of their businesses had been closed for over five months.
“This industry has incurred huge losses,” they argued.
They averred that their call was for the reopening of the liquor trade by ensuring that the PM complied with his own terms in the statement. They also added that they were conscious of the need to re-establish regulations with government, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade to be specific, for full trading operation within the provided liquor licences, subject to COVID-19 requirements by the Ministry of Health and WHO.
It is worth noting that after they had agreed to deliver the petition, some of the agitated liquor traders said they wanted to accompany their representatives when going to deliver their demands. They said they wanted the Speaker and the MPs to see that the petition came from them, not the representatives.
“We want them to see our anger,” they emphasised.
However, the secretary general of the association said they would also appreciate their company, but it would complicate things because of the time frame. He said there were laws like the Public Order Act, which they would have to adhere to if the petition delivery would start with a procession and they had to notify the office of the Speaker of the House of Assembly prior. In that regard, it was agreed that the petition should be delivered by the selected representatives and their hope was maybe tomorrow, a sitting to discuss the matter would be held.
As they concluded this topic, the liquor traders encouraged each other to lobby with MPs in their constituencies to support their call of reopening the sale of liquor.
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