Mbabane ; Considering the on-going Incwala ceremony several Cabinet Ministers and other senior government officials will not be able to pay their last respect to the late Prime Minister, Ambrose Mandvulo Dlamini.
The late Prime Minister will be laid to rest on, December 26.
This is according to a memo that was sent to senior police officers, which independent news has seen. The memo identifies the senior police who will be poll-bearers during the late Premier’s funeral.
A staunch traditional expert who elected to comment on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter explained to Independent News that it would be impossible for some members of Cabinet and high-ranking government officials, to attend the funeral of the diseased premier more so because of the on-going national prayer-Incwala. Incwala ceremony is regarded as a sacred event in Eswatini among other cultural ceremonies.
The traditionalist said Cabinet Ministers cannot attend the funeral because traditionally, one cannot attend a funeral and then go to mingle with their Majesties.
The expert said in such situations, the authorities usually elect a certain group of individuals (sigejane) to partake in the funeral and the rest of the people who were not elected are expected to be the ones who would continue to participate in the Incwala ceremony.
The traditionalist said cultures and traditions of the country needs to be given due respect, and since the Incwala Ceremony is already ongoing, it should continue without disturbance. He added that the funeral also needs to be respected hence Cabinet has appointed a sub-committee to make the necessary arrangements and logistics for the funeral. The Committee is chaired by the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Trade, Senator Manqoba Khumalo.The members of the committee are: Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Pholile Shakantu, Minister of Tourism and Environmental Affairs Moses Vilakati, Reverend Nicholas Nyawo, Dr. Phil Mnisi, Pastor Sibusiso Nhleko and Prime Minister’s Office Principal Secretary Lindiwe Mbingo; who will be the secretary.
Traditionally the King himself do not attend funerals and for the King attending funerals is regarded as taboo.
The Prime Minister will be accorded a state funeral in accordance with Finance Circular No.2 of 2013. This announcement was made by the Deputy Prime Minister Themba Nhlanganiso Masuku during a press conference at the Cabinet offices on Monday.
Dlamini died after contracting Covid-19, and he became the first world leader to succumb to the disease. He was 52.
Dlamini died Sunday while receiving medical care in neighbouring South Africa, the government said in a statement. “He died of Covid-19 complications,” it said on Monday.
Dlamini announced on November 15 he had tested positive for Covid-19. The government announced on December 1 that he was being transferred to a hospital in South Africa to receive treatment for the disease.
While global leaders including U.S. President Donald Trump, Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro and U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson have contracted Covid-19, none have died from the disease. Former Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza was reported by local media to have succumbed to Covid-19 in June, but the government said his cause of death was a heart attack.
As of December 16, 2020, Eswatini recorded 7 026 cases while 6 531 people have recuperated from the deadly coronavirus and 135 people have succumbed to the coronavirus.
Globally, 70,613,745 cases have been recorded as of December 16 along with 52,440,279 recoveries while 1,657,062 have died due to the coronavirus.
Dlamini served as Chief Executive Officer of MTN Eswatini, a unit of South African mobile-phone operator MTN Group Ltd., from 2010 until his appointment as Prime Minister in 2018. He was also the first liSwati Managing Director of South African lender Nedbank Group Ltd.’s operations in the country.
Eswatini is Africa’s last monarchy. A landlocked nation of 1.1 million people, the southern African nation has been led by King Mswati III since 1986 and was previously known as Swaziland before changing its official name in 2018 to Eswatini.
Discussion about this post