MBABANE – Three men from different parts of Eswatini have been convicted and sentenced by the Mbabane Magistrate’s Court after being found guilty of possessing dagga without valid permits.
The accused appeared separately before court but faced similar charges under the Pharmacy Act of 1929 and the Opium and Habit-Forming Drugs Act of 1922 as amended.
The first offender, 28-year-old Mbongwa Makwakwa of Fairview in Manzini, was charged under the Opium and Habit-Forming Drugs Act after police found him in possession of 2.5 kilograms of dagga. During mitigation, Makwakwa pleaded for leniency, explaining that he resorted to selling dagga because he was unemployed and needed to support his family. He told the court that he has a six-month-old baby who depends on formula milk, and without a stable source of income, he struggled to make ends meet. While the magistrate acknowledged his plea, Makwakwa was found guilty and sentenced to pay a fine of E1,000 or serve one year imprisonment.
The second accused, 39-year-old Bongani Msibi from Mankayane, was charged for contravening Section 12 of the Pharmacy Act of 1929 after he was found in possession of 7.5 kilograms of dagga. During mitigation, Msibi told the court that he was the sole breadwinner in his household and had school-going children whose fees were overdue. He also mentioned that his wife depended entirely on him for survival. Msibi expressed remorse and promised not to repeat the offence. The court sentenced him to pay a fine of E2,000 or serve two years imprisonment.
The third accused, 50-year-old Mcolisi Masuku of Makwane, faced charges under Section 7 of the Opium and Habit-Forming Drugs Act for being found in possession of 1.5 kilograms of dagga, classified as a poisonous substance, without a valid permit. In his plea for leniency, Masuku told the court that poverty had driven him to sell dagga as he was responsible for nine children who rely on him for food and shelter. He admitted that what he did was wrong but said desperation led him to commit the offence. The court sentenced him to pay a fine of E1,000 or serve one year imprisonment.
All three men were convicted after the court found that none of them had the required permits to possess or trade in dagga as stipulated under the country’s drug control laws.
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