TAXPAYERS SPEND E9.8M ON CARS FOR CJ, CHAIRS

MBABANE – About E9.8 million of taxpayers’ money has been allocated for the purchase of vehicles for the Chief Justice (CJ), Bheki Maphalala and four chairpersons of statutory bodies (emabandla). The figure is contained in the Report of the Finance Committee on the Supplementary Appropriation Bill, Bill No.2 of 2025. The allocation is yet to be debated and passed by Parliament.

The Supplementary Appropriation Bill, Bill No.2 of 2025, was tabled in the House of Assembly on February 14, 2024 and referred to the Finance Committee. In the report, it is highlighted that following the 2024/2025 budget, there had been requests from various line ministries and departments for a supplementary budget to finance shortfalls and expenditures that were unforeseen. The estimates contained in the bill are meant to provide for specific expenditure items which have been deemed critical.

The provision of vehicles for the chairpersons of emabandla is in accordance with a legal notice titled The Prescription of Statutory and Allowances of Emabandla, Commissions and Boards Notice, 2024. The notice was issued by Minister for Finance Neal Rijkenberg and is said to have come into effect on April 8, 2024. It provides that a chairperson of a Category A or Category B salaried libandla, statutory board, or commission shall be provided with an official government vehicle and shall not be entitled to a commuted car allowance as has been in the past.

There is also a provision for the deputy chairperson of the Elections and Boundaries Commission. The salaried emabandla include Liqoqo, Ludzidzini Council and the Border Restoration Committee. The rest are the Royal Board of Trustees, Civil Service Commission (CSC), Teaching Service Commission (TSC), Citizenship Board, Land Management Board (LMB) and the Minerals Management Board (MMB). Based on the notice, the chairpersons of Liqoqo, Ludzidzini Council and the EBC are under the main categories and earn higher salaries.
Regarding the CJ, it is believed that the provision for him is in accordance with the salary review which was completed in December last year by the Royal Commission.

This publication reported that judges will receive luxurious cars, following the completion of their salary review. The review will afford judges a flexible package when it comes to vehicles. The vehicles will come in the form of C-Class Mercedes-Benz, and the commission has ensured some form of flexibility in that the judges will have a choice. This is because they will be allowed to either take the stipulated vehicles or top up the benchmarked amount to purchase the models they prefer. Those who decide that they are still comfortable with the vehicles they are currently using will be allowed to continue with them and enjoy the car allowance.

Notably, the last salary review for judges was conducted in 2016, but was not implemented. When the commission was appointed, it worked on a review for politicians which was implemented and the judges were left out. The last time a review for salaries was implemented was in 2016 when the then-Minister for Finance, Martin Dlamini, issued what was known as the Prescription of Salaries and Allowances of Judicial Officers Notice 2016, which led to the adjustment of the salaries. The gazette stated that the term judicial officer meant the chief justice, Supreme Court judge, High Court judge, Industrial Court of Appeal judge, Industrial Court judge and any other judge of any court established by law.

While the task of reviewing the salaries rested with the chief justice (CJ) previously, things changed in 2018 as it was announced that the commission, which had initially been tasked with reviewing the salaries of the country’s politicians – the legislature (MPs and Senators) and the executive (Cabinet ministers) – had their assignment extended. It was gathered at the time that after the commission had completed their initial task and went to His Majesty King Mswati III to present their report, the Head of State issued the directive that their assignment be broadened to include reviewing the salaries for the Judiciary.

After the directive, Minister of Finance Neal Rijkenberg issued an extraordinary government gazette in the form of Legal Notice No. 2013 of 2018. This notice was to be read with Legal Notice No.167 of 2018, which announced the appointment of the Commission and its terms of reference. The notice amended the previous one by broadening the commission’s scope of work to include reviewing the salaries for ‘Judges of the superior court of judicature and Judges of the Industrial Court’. However, the commission allegedly halted the plan to review the salaries for the Judiciary, as it discovered that the office of the CJ at the time had already begun a similar exercise.

Despite reports that the office of the CJ had already begun such an exercise, no report was made public on the exercise.The remuneration for judges is in accordance with Section 141 (6) of the Constitution. The section states: “The salary, allowances, privileges and rights in respect of leave of absence, gratuity, pension and other conditions of service of a judge of a superior court or any judicial officer or other person exercising judicial power, shall not be varied to the disadvantage of that judge or judicial officer or other person.”Before the report on the judges’ review, this publication reported that the country’s Cabinet ministers will drive around in new fancy vehicles which have since been delivered on behalf of government.

The cars are the latest Toyota Land Cruiser Prado LC Prado 3.0D VX (25X). Each costs about E1 475 525. The vehicles have been purchased through one of the country’s car dealership companies. Also eligible to receive the cars are the four regional administrators (RAs), the attorney general (AG), Parliament Speaker, and Senate president. For the Cabinet fleet, about 18 cars have been reserved. In total, 27 vehicles will be given to the politicians. Based on the aforementioned figure, it means that the cars cost approximately E39 839 175. However, as has been the case in previous years, it is believed that government has received a discount from the dealership company.

The ministers are currently being driven in 4x4 Isuzu D-Max double cab vehicles, which were purchased early last year and this is because they are yet to collect the new cars which are still to be registered. These cars were part of 31 valued at E20 million to cater to ministers’ transport needs in the interim. The government said this was meant to cut costs associated with renting vehicles for government use. It said that the Isuzu Sports Utility vehicles, which are currently being used will be repossessed and returned to the ministry’s fleet to be used by ministries.

This is not the first time that a new fleet of vehicles under the current government’s name is purchased. In September last year, a delivery of a newly-acquired fleet of 68, all equipped with advanced tracking systems, was witnessed. At the time, government said the vehicles were to be allocated across various ministries. They formed part of a larger acquisition of 741 vehicles, purchased through Standard Bank Eswatini, at a total cost of E500 million. It was mentioned that the ministries were to receive the vehicles in stages, after completing all necessary registrations. The vehicles included Nissan Navara single cabs, Isuzu D-Max single cabs, and Kia Picantos, among others.

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