BLOCKADES COULD LEAD TO FUEL CRISIS

MANZINI – The country could be faced with a shortage of fuel next week if the threat of border blockades is anything to go by.

This could also be exacerbated by that fuel suppliers, retailers and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy have not yet put together a strategy to deal with the planned border blockades set for next week. According to a press release by the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU), from tomorrow until next week Friday, it will be the Eswatini Global Week of Action. This week-long programme is expected to consist of a blockade of two ports of entry linking the country with South Africa in the Mpumalanga Province.

These ports of entry are Ngwenya and Matsamo Border Gates. Also, COSATU informed its members and affiliates that in addition, traffic seeking to gain entry into the kingdom through Lavumisa Border Gate would be stopped. It is envisaged, according to the published programme by COSATU, that these border gates will be blockaded next Thursday (September 9, 2021). Worth noting is that local petroleum companies source their products from South Africa. In light of this propagated information, the Swaziland Fuel Retailers Association was contacted seeking to establish if any plans had been made to ensure that there was no fuel shortage in the country during the Eswatini Global Week of Action and the response was that there were none. Chairperson of the Swaziland Fuel Retailers Association Mduduzi Nyoni said: “It is outside our powers as the suppliers are the ones responsible.

"We’ve great concerns on how it may affect us though.” Nyoni said they were hopeful that the respective stakeholders in the sector would come up with a plan that would shield their industry from suffering any setbacks. Following this assertion by Nyoni, Galp Eswatini (Pty) Ltd was contacted as one of the suppliers to establish if any plans had been made and Fannie Mthethwa said: “We used to have Mozambique as our alternative; but this has been overtaken by events as government prefers that we focus on South Africa for fuel sourcing due to the Southern Africa Customs Union (SACU) reasons.”

risk

He further said the movement of trucks was totally dependent on the transporter who would assess the risk situation before allowing them to move. In essence, he said they had limited access to Mozambican products (due to government quota) and beyond that, they had no other option. Mthethwa further referred questions to the logistics company hauling their products into the country – Southern Star Logistics (Pty) Ltd. Human Resources Manager at Southern Star Logistics (Pty) Ltd Thabani Gina, said they usually relied on their sources’ input on the state of safety. She said at this moment, nothing had been planned and they were yet to consult security and then work based on the advice shared. On the other hand, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy Communications Officer, Sikelela Khoza, said there was nothing that had been communicated to them. He said for now everything was normal until such a time that the fuel suppliers reported any challenges.

Worth noting is that in July, the country experienced acute fuel shortages following political unrests in the kingdom and South Africa. Motorists would at some  instances be in long queues for extended hours to procure fuel overnight. Even upon accessing the fuel, in many fuel stations, it was rationed to about E200 per motorist. This, the public transport industry said, crippled their income as there was minimal business activity as they had to limit it in fear of running out of fuel.

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