Hlatikhulu – Two Home Affairs employees stationed in Hlatikhulu have been dismissed after an investigation exposed their role in an identity theft scheme that enabled foreign nationals to unlawfully obtain Eswatini national documents. The incident was first reported by the Times of Eswatini and has since drawn wide public attention due to its impact on national security and the integrity of the country’s civil registration system.
The investigation was launched after police intercepted several travellers who attempted to leave the country with Eswatini passports but were found to be Ethiopian nationals. This prompted the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs to order an internal probe, which uncovered that the stolen identities of elderly Swati women had been used to register non citizens as their children. Those individuals later accessed birth certificates, identity cards and passports.
During the disciplinary hearing before the Civil Service Commission chaired by Simanga Mamba, evidence showed that the fraudulent entries were linked to the login credentials of typists Sandra Dlamini and Penelope Kunene at the Hlatikhulu office. Audit trails further revealed that Assistant Regional Civil Registrar Zwane, based at the Mbabane Headquarters, had processed the irregular birth certificates before the typists printed the documents and generated barcodes.
Investigators noted that the documents were registered and approved on the same day, a scenario described as impossible under proper procedures for late birth registrations, which require affidavits, supporting documents and thorough verification. The surnames on the fraudulent documents were identified as foreign, something that experienced staff were expected to notice.
Dlamini denied misconduct during the hearing, saying she acted under instructions from Zwane and argued that she had not been fully inducted into her duties. The commission dismissed this justification, pointing to her 17 years of service and stating that she understood the processes well enough to recognise and report irregular requests. Her decision not to alert supervisors, even after police questioned her, was viewed as evidence that she knew the documents were unlawful.
The CSC ruled that both typists knowingly enabled the issuance of national documents to individuals who were not entitled to them, exposing the country to risks such as criminal infiltration, terrorism and unauthorised access to state systems. It also found that their actions undermined the accuracy of the National Population Registry, a vital tool for government planning and resource allocation.
In her mitigation letter, Dlamini pleaded for leniency, saying she is a 53 year old liSwati who supports her unemployed husband, three children, her diabetic mother and an unemployed brother caring for two schoolgoing children. She expressed remorse and stated that losing her job would cause severe hardship for her family.
The commission acknowledged her personal challenges but maintained that the seriousness of the misconduct, which contravened several legal frameworks including the Immigration Act, Citizenship Act, Passport Act and the National Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Act, required firm corrective action. Both Dlamini and Kunene were dismissed with immediate effect.
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