LAWYER MNGOMEZULU: LIFT BAN AND I WILL REPAY STUDY LOAN

MBABANE – There is a new twist in the matter of Lawyer Sicelo Mngomezulu and the money he owes government for a scholarship.

The lawyer has come out to state that unless government lifts the ban against him, he will not repay the E132 000 he owes government in study loan. This comes after the Scholarship Recovery Consortium on Tuesday reached out to the lawyer, in an attempt to recover the study loan. Project Coordinator at the consortium Gugu Simelane said they contacted Mngomezulu on Tuesday. “We have already contacted him and he provided us with his email address. His study loan statement has already been sent to him,” she said. Simelane said if it was a question of him not being contacted, then they expected him to honour his obligation; given that he had been given full details of the debt through his statement.

Budget

On Wednesday, March 22, 2023, during the Deputy Prime Minister’s (DPM) Office annual budget and 2023/2024 budget debate, the DPM, Themba Masuku, told senators that the person who was behind the disruption of the civic voter education (at KaLiba in Hosea) was the very same person who slaughtered cows for maidens who did not attend the Reed Dance Ceremony last year August.

The DPM told the senators that the person who was behind the disruption of the civic voter education exercise also owed around E132 000 in study loan. He did not mention any names in Senate. But in an interview with this publication, Masuku confirmed that he was referring to Mngomezulu and he had proof that he had not repaid a single cent of the scholarship awarded to him.

Mngomezulu graduated at the University of Swaziland (UNISWA), now known as the University of Eswatini (UNESWA), in 2004, with an LLB Degree after he was funded by government. Worth noting is that the scholarship agreement forms that were signed in the yesteryears stated in black and white that after five years of completing studies, a beneficiary was expected to repay 50 per cent of the loan and failure to do so, one would be compelled to pay the entire loan.

In our Monday publication, Mngomezulu confirmed that he never repaid the study loan and stated that no one from government had reached him when he made attempts to repay it. Adding, the lawyer said he was capable of repaying the loan within two minutes, only if he could be furnished with an invoice and once the banning order against him was lifted.

It should be noted that government had moved an application to have Mngomezulu declared an undesirable and prohibited immigrant for allegedly offering a cow to maidens who would not attend the Reed Dance Ceremony last year. In the matter that is still pending in court, Mngomezulu, who resides in the Republic of South Africa, filed his papers where he denied to have encouraged anyone to boycott Umhlanga. The move was made after he was accused of having encouraged maidens from Hosea Constituency not to attend the annual Reed Dance Ceremony last year.

Engagement

Meanwhile, Mngomezulu, when he was contacted yesterday regarding his engagement with the consortium and if he would repay the loan now that he had received his statement, said he did not wish to deliberate any further on the issue. The lawyer was asked if he had received the communiqué from the consortium and if he would repay the loan since he was contacted or he wanted government to lift the ban. “I’ve said all there is to say on this. Tell your government to lift the illegal and immoral ban against me,” he said. On the other hand, Simelane stated that the consortium was multi-disciplined entity, which worked closely with stakeholders specialising in tracing people, be it in or outside the country.

Once traced, the consortium contacts those beneficiaries, either via email or cellphone, with the intention of informing them about their study loans and emphasising on the importance of repaying. Fortunately, Simelane said most beneficiaries of the government study loans who resided outside the country agreed to make repayment arrangements once they had been contacted. “It is important to understand that the obligation to repay the study loan lies with the study loan beneficiary as stated in the study loan agreement, which beneficiaries signed upon receiving the scholarships. The agreement clearly states that the onus is on the beneficiaries to report to the responsible ministry to make the repayment arrangement within three months of employment,” she said.  

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