MBABANE – Daily food rations of over 460 Orphaned and Vulnerable Children (OVCs) have been abruptly shut down amidst the ongoing feud between the Municipal Council of Mbabane and residents at Mangwaneni area.
Independent News found that for over a month now, the Municipal Council of Mbabane has indefinitely closed the Mangwaneni Social Centre. It was a centre which fed needy children, most of whom are pupils at Mangwaneni Community Primary School, on a daily basis after school before going to their respective places of abode.
Workers at the centre said the social centre doubled as a pre-school but since its indefinite closure the minors who attended pre-school at the centre had to remain at home ever since its closure.
A few weeks ago, some concerned residents of the area stormed the Mbabane Municipality demanding that they were handed over the centre’s keys. They alleged that Council had no authority to close the community facility. They insisted that facility belongs to the community and not the municipality.
The residents alleged that when it was constructed a few years back, each homestead was requested to contribute at least E30, and the Municipal Council only contributed a part of the funds as they were merely assisting partners. The residents also argued that community members undertook the physical work of construction of the centre and not the Council.
@independentnewses Mbabane Council Shuts Mangwanani Centre, 460 Orphans Left Starving #IndependentNewsEswatini ♬ original sound – IndependentNewsEswatini
When the Municipal Council of Mbabane Information and Public Relations Officer, Lucky Tsabedze, was drawn for comment on the matter, he confirmed it. Tsabedze highlighted that the issue of Mangwaneni was an old feud between Council and Mangwaneni residents.
Tsabedze noted that the feud is related to that residents maintain that the area is under the authority of a Chief as there was a Royal Household, and not by the municipality. He also said the Municipal Council of Mbabane called upon residents to halt construction of new structures ahead of proper development municipality plans for the area.
Despite this call, he said, residents have continued to construct new structures while Council rendered services such as garbage collection.
“We have decided to stop rendering our services at Mangwaneni because they do not want to obey the instruction [that was] issued by the then Minister of Housing and Urban Development Prince Simelane. The erstwhile minister called upon residents to temporarily stop construction of new structures and Council to stop demolition of their houses until a solution was found to the ongoing impulse. However, we have noted as Council that the residents continue to construct new structures despite this directive from the then minister,” said Tsabedze.
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