CONVICTED NTUTHUKO SPENDS 27 DAYS WITHOUT SENTENCING

MBABANE – Ex-Minister of Public Works and Transport Ntuthuko Michael Dlamini has spent 27 days in jail without sentencing.

On the same day of his conviction on December 12, 2022, the former LaMgabhi Member of Parliament (MP) was taken to Sidwashini Correctional Facility, where he has been waiting for his sentencing. Judge Maxine Langwenya found him guilty of murdering three people. Dlamini was also found guilty of possessing a firearm without a valid permit. It was stated that the court would sentence him on a date that was yet to be determined. It must be said that it took the High Court nine days to sentence serial killer David Simelane to hang. Simelane, now aged 66, was found guilty on March 23, 2011 and sentenced on April 1, 2011. Jacobus Annadale handled the case. His case was high profile one, based on the large number of people he had murdered.

Based on his status and the number of people he killed, the ex-politician’s case is also a high profile one. It is not certain how long he will serve in prison. Section 15 (1) of the Constitution of the Kingdom of Eswatini provides that a person shall not be deprived of life intentionally save in the execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence under the law of Swaziland (Eswatini), of which that person has been convicted. Subsection 2 states that the death penalty shall not be mandatory and subsection 3 provides that a sentence of life imprisonment shall not be less than 25 years. The offences were committed on September 7, 2020 at Mhlabubovu. The three men the former minister and LaMgabhi MP killed were members of the Luyengweni Inner Council. These were Sikhulu Shongwe, who was 70 years old, Simon Dlamini (61) and Themba Tsabedze (65).

When the trio was shot on the fateful day, they were carrying out an exercise as the inner council, to tie the knot after allocating one Mbongiseni Dlamini a piece of land, which previously belonged to a Motsa family. According to a Times of Eswatini news report of December 12, 2022, while the inner council members and others who attended the exercise were having refreshments after tying the knot, Ntuthuko, who was in the company of three men, Derrick Maziya, Sipho Matsenjwa and Vusi Zulu, arrived and asked what they were doing on land that belonged to Chief Ndzimanye.

intervene

It was reported that Maziya and the others had called Ntuthuko and requested him to intervene, when they learnt that members of the Luyengweni Inner Council were allocating land at Mhlabubovu. The people they found at Mhlabubovu did not respond and Ntuthuko called the station commander of Bhunya Police Station, whom he requested to send police officers to Mhlabubovu because there were people who were illegally allocating land in the area. The Luyengweni people, according to the court, shouted and told Ntuthuko that if he had an issue with what they were doing, he should report the matter to the relevant structures. One of the Luyengweni people, Big Boi Maseko, told Ntuthuko that they had been asked by Chief Lembelele to allocate land to certain people at Mhlabubovu.

The former minister informed the court that at this point, he was speaking to his uncle, Bhekwako Mkhabela. He said he was disturbed by the utterances of Maseko and told him to shut up as he did not speak to timfucuta. Ntuthuko told the court that imfucuta is a person who has no position, status, title in his/her community. Sihle Dlamini confronted the former minister for calling them timfucuta and this led to the shooting of the elderly men by Ntuthuko. In her judgment, Judge Langwenya said the Crown had to prove beyond reasonable doubt that Ntuthuko shot Simon and Shongwe multiple times and Tsabedze once in the chest with the intention to kill them and that the gunshot wounds caused their death. The headman of Luyengweni, Dumisa Ginindza, Sihle and Mkhabela, who were eyewitnesses, testified during the trial that they saw the former politician shooting the trio with a firearm. The Times of Eswatini reported that police pathologist Dr Reddy determined that Shongwe died as a result of multiple injuries over the left ear region, neck, chest, among other areas.

complications

The pathologist determined that Simon died from complications consequent to abdominal injuries caused by the gunshot. Tsabedze, according to Dr Reddy, died from the firearm injury involving the heart and lungs. Ntuthuko admitted to shooting the trio and told the court that he was acting in private defence. In his defence, he said he shot Simon accidentally (wadubuleka). Judge Langwenya stated that a person could not accidentally act in self-defence since that required an act of will. The judge said when Simon was shot; he had approached Ntuthuko to calm the tempers between Sihle and the former minister, who were arguing over the former’s reference to them as timfucuta. Since he was a herdsman, Simon was said to always carry a knobstick. The ex-minister said Simon raised the knobkerrie at him. Mkhabela gave the same evidence to the court. However, Sihle and Ginindza told the court that Simon never raised his knobstick and he did not attempt to assault Ntuthuko.

Judge Langwenya stated in her judgment that the legal position was that a person who was attacked and feared for his life or that he would suffer grave injury, may defend himself to the extent necessary to avoid the attack. “In other words, the attacked person is at large to use force to repel the unlawful attack against him. The degree of force used in repelling the attack should be no more than reasonably necessary in the circumstances. “Consequently, a revenge or attack in retaliation for an earlier grievance is not protected by the law of private defence,” said Judge Langwenya. A person who pleads private defence, according to the court, must have been facing an emergency out of which he could not avoid serious injury or even death unless he took the action he did.

mentioned

Judge Langwenya mentioned that at the time he was shot, Simon was 65 years old, while Ntuthuko was aged 49 years. “Clearly, the accused was the aggressor at this stage of the incident. Accused confirms that the people from Luyengweni were not aggressive when he confronted them about why they were at Mhlabubovu on that day. ‘‘They did not fight the accused. Chaos ensued when the accused used offensive language against them,” the judge said. Judge Langwenya said Ntuthuko’s explanation that he directed the offensive word to Big Boi and not the Luyengweni Inner Council, was mischievous, misconceived and misleading because he (Big Boi) was part of the people from Luyengweni. Ntuthuko was armed with a firearm, according to the court, and he was angered by Big Boi’s response that they were at Mhlabubovu on the instruction of Chief Lembelele.

Judge Langwenya said Simon and Tsabedze were among the people who the accused shot when they tried to calm tempers between him and Sihle. Ntuthuko told the court that he was under attack and he was defending himself by warding off unlawful attacks. The judge said this version could not stand in the light of the totality of the evidence. The former minister and LaMgabhi MP was represented by Noncedo Ndlangamandla of Mabila Attorneys. Principal Crown Counsel Ncamsile Masuku and Crown Counsel Nolwazi Mabila appeared for the Crown.

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