Mbabane- A dispute over delayed annual returns at Bunye Betfu Savings and Credit Co-operative Society has intensified, with members rejecting a 12 per cent return announced by the chairperson and insisting that they were expecting 15 per cent.
The members, who say the annual interest is normally paid in August, have yet to receive their money. Their frustration has now moved beyond the delay, with some saying they no longer want a meeting with the board and instead want the money they believe is due to them transferred directly into their accounts.
The dispute comes at a particularly sensitive time for the co-operative, which has more than 6,600 members, largely drawn from the public sector.
James Dlamini, who said he joined Bunye Betfu in 2003, said members had initially expected to receive their annual interest in August but had received neither the money nor satisfactory answers on the delay.
He said the announcement of a 12 per cent return had further angered members because they had expected 15 per cent.
The member said the frustration could not be separated from the financial pressures facing many of the co-operative’s members, particularly civil servants.
“Most members of the co-operative are civil servants and are being paid under A and B category, in which they got nothing on salary review. Their hope is on the co-operative,” he said.
He said the annual return had consequently become an important source of financial relief for members.
The latest dispute follows a confrontation at the co-operative’s offices earlier this month, when more than 40 members demanded answers over the unpaid dividends. Employees reportedly locked themselves inside their offices before police were called to calm the situation.
The members were eventually addressed by Vice Chairperson Eric Ndlovu, who assured them that their money was safe. He attributed the delay to problems arising from the auditing process and a change in the organization’s accounting system.
Ndlovu said differences had emerged during the audit and needed to be resolved before accurate financial statements could be produced and the dividend determined.
He also acknowledged that there were problems within the executive, saying something had gone wrong internally.
The disagreement has since taken another turn, with Chairperson Fortunate Lukhele declining to meet the members.
Speaking on a phone call which the Royal Eswatini Police Services made, Lukhele said she was afraid to meet the members following a statement from the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA). She said no one was eligible to speak on the matter because an investigation involving the board was under way.
This, the comments leave the co-operative facing questions over both the delayed payment and the process through which the final return will be determined.
Bunye Betfu was established in 1990 and has grown into one of the country’s larger savings and credit co-operatives, primarily serving public-sector employees. A 2025 publication on Eswatini’s co-operative sector reported that the SACCO had more than 6,600 members and had acquired its own complex in Mbabane.
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