5YRS FOR USING INKHOSIKATI’S NAME TO GET JOB

EZULWINI – The woman accused of using Inkhosikati LaFogiyane’s name to acquire an international passport and a house for her husband has been convicted.

Thobile Princess Motsa (39) of Ndzingeni was sentenced to five years imprisonment with an option to pay a fine of E10 000. She was convicted by Principal Magistrate Fikile Nhlabatsi yesterday. Motsa submitted that being unemployed forced her to commit the fraud. Meanwhile, the Crown told the court that witnesses would not be paraded, as Motsa submitted a statement of agreed facts. The convict is said to have pleaded guilty to the three fraud counts. She also agreed to have sent a message via WhatsApp platforms to a cellphone number of Nompumelelo Dlamini, the Under Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, alleging that she was Inkhosikati LaFogiyane’s maid (tamati).  In the message, she said the inkhosikati wanted to talk to her, but she ignored the message.

Misrepresented

She is said to have also misrepresented to the Ministry of Home Affairs that Inkhosikati LaFogiyane had directed that Sikhumbuzo Rudolf Sukati, a Deputy Prime Minister’s Office employee, who is her husband, be allocated a government house in Mbabane. She is said to have committed the offence on January 31, 2024. It was also agreed that the convict called Sipho Tsabedze, the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Public Service, pretending to be the personal assistant of the inkhosikati.

She is said to have induced the government officials to action the request, as they genuinely believed that the request was authentic, to the prejudice of various government departments. The convict also agreed that after receiving a letter of  appointment, she was dissatisfied with Grade B3 salary  and wanted to be paid based on C3, as she alleged she was salaried at E15 000, by the inkhosikati as her assistant.

Passport

Around May 16, 2024, in Mbabane, Motsa also misrepresented to the Ministry of Home Affairs, Immigration Department, that the inkhosikati had directed that she be furnished with an international passport. In her statement of agreed facts, Motsa said she felt remorseful of her conduct. She also said the tamati was not the accused person who made calls on behalf of Inkhosikati. She confessed that her conduct of misrepresentation was unlawful.

She further agreed that the documents, such as an application letter for international passport; application form for Eswatini passport; copy of an ID and international passport; letter of appointment from Civil Service Commission; employment application; academic transcripts; VELA sim registration documents, among others, be submitted to form part of the evidence. In mitigation of sentence, she pleaded for the court’s leniency, saying she is a mother of two.She then informed the court that she had been in custody for almost three months and, therefore, that must be taken into consideration. Nhlabatsi cautioned her to refrain from such conduct in the future.

Post your comment

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Add your comments:

Please enter the code you see in the image:

Image:

Code: