BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – The Office of the Commissioner for Cooperative Development under the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Trade has suspended the entire Board and Supervisory Committee of the Eswatini Multipurpose Cooperative Union (ESWAMCU), the mother body of all non-finance cooperatives, pending a forensic audit into the operations of the union.
The decision has been announced by Minister for Commerce, Industry and Trade Manqoba Khumalo today at the Commerce Ministry’s Headquarters in Mbabane. ESWAMCU’s core mandate is to supply farm inputs to Emaswati at affordable prices and ensure that they organise markets for farmers’ produce. An Interim Committee is taking over the operations of the union.
Speaking about the development, Minister Khumalo said: “Government has a mandate to ensure a conducive environment for the growth and sustainability of all types of cooperatives in the country. The Cooperative Societies Act, 2003, as amended, provides for the office of the Commissioner to intervene if the Management Committee fails to exercise due diligence in the running of the cooperative.”
Adding on the matter, the minister said: “It is in that spirit that the Ministry has to ensure proper administration of public funds invested by emaSwati in this institution and took a resolution to invoke the provisions of section 72 (4) and 74 (1) of the Cooperative Societies Act, 2003 as amended 2023. The entire Board and Supervisory Committee of ESWAMCU was suspended, pending a forensic audit that will be conducted by SNG Grant Thornton Pty Ltd, an independent audit firm.”
The Interim committee comprises Dr. Sotja G. Dlamini (Senior Lecturer at UNESWA, specialising in Agricultural Economics), Almon K. Shabangu (Retired Officer with vast experience in cooperative, spanning over 30 years), Mhlonipheni W. Msibi (a member of Ngwempisi Multipurpose Cooperative Society, where he has served as a Board member) and Thembinkosi Fakudze (Ex-officio and Executive Manager at the National Cooperative Federation of Eswatini).
