BY MBONO MDLULI
LOBAMBA – Eswatini is faced with a challenge of an influx of people suspected to be of Congolese and Somalian origins.
This was said today by Mayiwane Member of Parliament (MP) Sicelo Prince Dlamini during the 2023/24 annual performance debate of the Ministry of Home Affairs, which took place in the House of Assembly.
Dlamini said it was concerning because the influx seemed to have been happening for a long time now. Dlamini said these people seemed to have been chased from Eswatini’s neighbouring countries, with their next stop being Eswatini.
According to the MP, these foreigners entered the country through various ports of entry and it looked like the set up had the hallmarks of human trafficking.
The foreigners entered the country and this activity seems to be coordinated by certain individuals, who were kingpins or masterminds of the activities. These individuals colluded with senior police officers, according to the MP.
Once these foreigners were in this country, they would be made to work as slaves and the police officers would be used to threaten the foreigners if they tried to bust the operations. While working as slaves, the foreigners would be forced to stay in a certain area for a long time.
The MP said what shocked him was that one of the police officers involved in these activities was known to him. Mbabane East MP Welcome Dlamini wanted to know what the Ministry was doing to deal with the alleged terrorists who entered the country.
He made an example of the alleged killers of renowned Musician Kiernan ‘AKA’ Forbes, who are said to have entered the country and got to be arrested after a year. He wanted to know why such a thing happened.
Mhlambanyatsi MP Dr Bonginkosi Dlamini complained about foreigners who kept increasing in number in the country and they got preferential treatment from the Ministry of Home Affairs, to the prejudice of Emaswati.
