PETITION OVER MKHONTO’S J. GALAXY TRANSFER

MBABANE – United Eswatini Diaspora (UED) has reportedly petitioned Botswana side Jwaneng Galaxy over the sale of former Green Mamba midfielder Mxolisi ‘Kudus’ Mkhonto.

The Sihlangu and former Green Mamba midfielder signed for the Botswana Premiership side over a fortnight ago, in a lucrative two-year deal of E200 000. ‘Kudus’ made his debut for Jwaneng Galaxy in an away game against Security Systems XI at the Lobatse Sports Complex Stadium, coming as a second-half substitute in a 1-0 victory just recently. According to the latest reports, the South African organisation has written a letter to the Botswana Premiership side, requesting the release of the player by virtue of being a member of the security forces, who are accused of violence during the political unrest that occurred in Eswatini in 2021. The letter was posted on the diaspora’s official online media platforms. In June 2021, Eswatini experienced a significant wave of protests that began as peaceful demonstrations, but culminated in the looting, burning of property and loss of lives. This unrest was triggered by various factors that are linked to political and economic reforms.

protests

In June, 2021, protests broke out in several parts of the country, with demonstrators demanding democratic reforms and a transition to a democratic government. These protests were initially peaceful, but the situation escalated on June 25, 2021, when the government prohibited the delivery of petitions and adopted a hardline stance against the demonstrations. This led to widespread violence and looting the following weekend. Some of the accusations made by the UED against the player cannot be repeated as they cannot be proven. “We intend to mobilise some of the CAF (Confederation of African Football) affiliates around Mxolisi.

mobilise

“In the meantime, we will mobilise Swazis (emaSwati) in the SA Diaspora to picket whenever Jwaneng Galaxy play in SA, as long as Mxolisi Mkhonto is part of the Botswana football team,” reads the letter in part. Efforts to get comments from IB Dlamini, who is said to be the convenor of the diaspora, were futile at the time of compiling this report, as his phone was on voicemail. This publication wanted to establish how the petition was delivered and the response from Galaxy. This publication further sought to find the real motive behind the unexpected, as Mkhonto was not the only player linked with security forces who had made an international move during the period under review.

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