TIMOTHY INSISTS DPM’S PETITIONS BAN SPARKED VIOLENCE

MBABANE – Nkilongo MP Timothy Myeni insists that the violence in the country started after DPM Themba Masuku, in his capacity as acting prime minister at the time, issued a ban on petitions delivery in June last year.

Myeni was testifying yesterday in the trial of Members of Parliament (MPs) Mduduzi Bacede Mabuza and Mthandeni Dube of Hosea and Ngwempisi tinkhundla respectively. The incarcerated MPs are accused of terrorism, among other offences, in that they allegedly incited members of the public to riot against a legally constituted government and bringing hatred to the person of His Majesty the King. MP Mabuza made a similar accusation against the deputy prime minister (DPM) on August 10, 2022 during his evidence-in-chief. He told the court that Masuku allegedly caused the riots that erupted in June last year. MP Mabuza said: “Wagila tiga Umhlonishwa DPM (the Honourable DPM blundered).”

According to MP Mabuza, members of the public became angry when Masuku announced that government had taken a decision to stop the physical delivery of petitions to the various tinkhundla centres. The MP was responding to the allegation that he and his co-accused, MP Dube, incited members of the public to riot through the speeches they were making at the time. The charge states that MP Mabuza and MP Dube should have foreseen that there would be acts of violence as a result of their speeches. MP Myeni, who was the third witness to testify yesterday, said he had neither witnessed acts of violence at his constituency during the petition delivery nor were any reported by other MPs.

The Nkilongo MP told the court that during the delivery of petitions, the youth would sing and dance but not vandalise or destroy property. According to MP Myeni, acts of violence were witnessed after the acting PM had announced a ban on the physical delivery of petitions. “We witnessed violence after the DPM had banned the delivery of petitions. It started at Siphofaneni where the people were due to deliver their petition when the ban was announced,” MP Myeni said. He also informed the court that when the acting PM issued the ban, parliamentarians had made a resolution during a caucus that the delivery of petitions should continue so that the few remaining MPs would also receive the petitions from the constituents.
The next step, according to MP Myeni, as resolved by the MPs, was to consider the grievances or issues raised in the various petitions and to determine if the issues were similar, so that they would be dealt with accordingly.

He said they were surprised when the acting PM announced the ban on the delivery of petitions, at a time when the Speaker, Petros Mavimbela, had adjourned Parliament proceedings sine die. “We were very shocked that the petitions delivery had been banned because Cabinet was supposed to uphold what Parliament had resolved,” said MP Myeni. Upon taking to the witness stand, MP Myeni, who is also a musician, pastor and businessman, serving a third term in Parliament, submitted that he was previously the Chairperson of the PM Office Portfolio Committee from 2008 to 2013. He said currently he is the Chairperson of the Ministry of Tinkhundla Administration and Development Portfolio Committee. He informed the court that he recalled that on June 21, 2021, in Parliament, he was one of the MPs who had received petitions from their constituents. He stated that he was among the MPs who wanted to deliberate on the issue of the delivery of petitions since it was a burning issue in the constituencies.

Maseyisini MP Mduduzi Small Joe Dlamini, according to MP Myeni, raised a point that the MPs should hold a caucus to deliberate on the issue of the petitions. During the caucus, MP Myeni submitted, they discussed what they should do because members of the public wanted them to deal with the issue of petitions. He said there was a suggestion that some MPs had not yet received petitions. “MPs agreed in one voice during the caucus that we should wait until all the tinkhundla centres or MPs had received petitions to see if the concerns were similar and what the petitions contained. It was expected that by June 26, 2021 all petitions would have been received. The acting DPM issued a ban on the petitions delivery at tinkhundla. We were surprised what to do since the House had made a resolution because this is what we were employed to do...to speak on behalf of the people,” said MP Myeni.

He also informed the court that on June 21, 2021, the acting PM and Attorney General Sifiso Khumalo were present during the caucus. He said he could not be sure if all MPs and ministers were present, but they formed the quorum. At this stage the Crown’s representative, Advocate Gareth Leppan from South Africa, applied that the matter be stood down. He said he became aware in morning that MPs would be called to testify. The advocate said he had discussed the issue briefly with his instructing attorney and they needed to take instructions before cross-examining MP Myeni. The matter was postponed to this morning for the cross-examination of MP Myeni. MPs Mabuza and Dube are represented by Advocate Jacobus Van Vuuren, who is assisted by Ben J. Simelane and Mhlengi Mabuza.

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