EBIS BOSS RUNS TO COURT TO STOP SUSPENSION

MBABANE – “The matter is prematurely before court as the application is not founded on facts but on speculation by the applicant.”

These averments were made by government in the matter where EBIS Director Martin Bonginkhosi Dlamini wants the court to interdict and restrain the State from suspending him from work.

Through his attorneys, Dlamini yesterday moved an urgent application at the Industrial Court.

He is also seeking an order setting aside the report dated September 21, 2020 made to Parliament by the select committee that was investigating allegations of corruption, nepotism and maladministration at Eswatini Broadcasting and Information Services (EBIS) and the Eswatini Television Authority (ETVA).

Respondents in the matter are the Government of the Kingdom of Eswatini, minister of Information Communication and Technology, principal secretary in the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology and the Civil Service Commission.

In its opposing papers, the State highlighted that Dlamini filed the application based on a report and recommendations made by the chairman of the select committee and Speaker of the House of Assembly.

Government averred that the report entailed merely recommendations which might not even be implemented.

“There is no evidence of whether this report has even been forwarded to the employer of the applicant (Dlamini), being the Civil Service Commission.  It is the chairman of the Civil Service Commission who holds the sole prerogative of suspending the applicant should the need arise,” contended the respondent (government).

It was further government’s contention that, Regulation 42 of the Civil Service Regulations had not even been complied with at this stage. 

“Charges have not been preferred against the applicant and we are not even sure if the employer intends preferring them,” submitted the respondent.

The respondent argued that the matter was prematurely before court as the application was not founded on facts but conjecture by Dlamini.

Corruption

Meanwhile, in his application, Dlamini narrated that on October 26, 2020, a report was tabled in Parliament by the select committee investigating serious allegations of corruption, nepotism and maladministration reported to be rampant at EBIS and ETVA.

“During the discussions following the delivery of the report, the speakers recommended that I must be removed from my position.  While it was accepted that I must be removed, some members were sceptical of this course of action as it is illegal,” contended the EBIS director.

He alleged that in that circumstance, it was decided that he should be suspended.Dlamini argued that the report that was tabled in Parliament was allegedly unlawful and unjust.

According to the applicant (Dlamini), the report ought to be set aside as he was never given a chance to respond to a number of the allegations made against him in the report. 

He also claimed that the responses he made on the allegations he was made aware of, were omitted from the report. It was further Dlamini’s contention that some of the allegations were completely impractical and defamatory.

“The manner in which the information was gathered is unfair and unjust.  The people making the submissions are not revealed to us.  The truthfulness of the information that was gathered was not examined and the process was flawed in that regard,” he argued.

He informed the court that when he was interviewed, the members of the select committee allegedly appeared to be disorganised.   Dlamini brought it to the attention of the court that there was no questionnaire and the members of the select committee were allegedly in a hurry to conclude the process.

“The mandate of the select committee was to investigate allegations of corruption, nepotism and maladministration. There is nothing contained in the report  that suggested that I am corrupt, that I practise nepotism or that I fail as an administrator at the station,” averred Dlamini.

These are allegations contained in an affidavit whose veracity is still to be tested in court and the respondents are yet to file their papers.

The matter is pending before Acting Industrial Court Judge Banele Ngcamphalala and appearing for Dlamini is Baneme Dlamini. 

Appearing for government is Senior Crown Counsel Noluthando Xaba from the chamber of the attorney general. The report is annexed to the application that was filed by the director yesterday.

According to the report, one of the witnesses, who were invited by the committee to deliver their testimonies, alleged that the staff members at EBIS were aggrieved with regard to the directorate, who they felt was not at all concerned about their plight.

The witness said an example was that there was a senior reporter, who was allegedly disruptive and violent at the radio station. The witness claimed that the senior reporter threatened staff members.

“Sometimes he allegedly pulled knives on some of them and generally behaves in a very inappropriate manner that hinders the work,” reads part of the select committee’s report.

Again, the witness told the select committee that this matter was supposedly reported to the directorate. However, he claimed that very little to no help had been forthcoming and the staff eventually resorted to calling the police themselves, with the administration pretty much staying out of the situation. 

“Some of the staff had to read the news with a policeman standing sentry for fear that the disorderly staff member would show up and disrupt the newsreader. A member of staff has even resigned because of this situation,” the witness claimed in his submissions. 

He submitted that what hurt them the most was that the Ministry of Information Communication and Technology (ICT) allegedly did not want to intervene in these matters. 

“Actually, at some point the PS in the ministry expressed to the witness that he understands why the director behaved in the manner he did and said it was because he has been subjected to ill-treatment himself since he started working at EBIS,” claimed the witness in his submissions before the select committee.

Also, the witness told the select committee that to them (staff), it became clear that the ministry was more concerned about the well-being of the director than it was about the staff members. He submitted that this really left very few platforms, if any, for the staff members to report their grievances and this added to their frustrations.

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