King Mswati III Swaziland’s absolute monarch has extended
voter registration in his kingdom for another 11 days even though the Elections
and Boundaries Commission (EBC) announced 87 percent of eligible voters had registered
by the deadline on Sunday (17 June 2018).
EBC chair Chief Gija Dlamini said the King had done
this following reports that there had been a high turnout on the final day. He
did not disclose how many people registered on the final day.
On the day registration ended the Sunday Observer a newspaper in effect owned by King Mswati reported
the EBC saying that as of 16 June 2018 ‘over 590,000
voters were registered’.
On Monday after registration closed the EBC announced
that 526,073 people had registered to vote for the election in September, about
70,000 fewer than it had reported previously. The Swazi Observer, also owned by the King, reported on Tuesday the
number registering was ‘unprecedented’. It said it represented 87 percent of
those entitled to vote.
At the last election in 2013, 414,704 people
registered to vote according to the EBC’s election report published in 2017. This
contradicted the number of 411,084 it had released at the time of registration.
The EBC said on Tuesday it could not give a date when
the voters’ roll would be available for public inspection but gave no reason.
The King’s order and the EBC misrepresentation of registration
numbers throws doubt over the election that is widely considered
outside of Swaziland to be undemocratic.
Throughout the registration period there have been reports
of incompetence, corruption and nepotism. Police
are to vet all nominated candidates ahead of the vote.
There is confusion about how many people are eligible
to vote in the election. When the process started on 13 May 2018 the EBC said
it was 500,000, later after public scepticism about the figure’s accuracy it increased
the number to 600,000. The EBC said it based its figure on the 2017 population
census in Swaziland that put the number of people living in the kingdom aged 18
and over (the voting age) at 625,629. Data published
by CIA Factbook based on 2017 figures puts the estimated population
at 1.4 million and suggests the number of voters is between 700,000 and 800,000.
The EBC has a history of poor performance since it was
inaugurated in 2008. It took four years for it to produce its
official report on the last election in 2013 and it has still not
published the full results. The winners in each constituency have been
announced but the number of votes cast for each candidate competing have not.
When registration began this year equipment was not in
place at all centres and trained election personnel were not always available
and there were many reports of computer failures. A toll-free line available
for people to report grievances and challenges they met at registration centres
failed to work on MTN mobile phone numbers. Many people did not receive voter
cards after registering, leaving them in doubt that they would be able to cast
their vote.
Reports of attempted bribery were rife across the
kingdom where King Mswati III rules as sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute
monarch and political parties are banned from taking part in elections.
Elections in Swaziland are widely
regarded as not democratic by observers outside the kingdom. The
King choses the Prime Minister and government ministers and the parliament has
no powers as these rest with the King.
At Maphungwane in the Matsanjeni
North Constituency football teams rejected a E10,000 (US$790) sponsorship from
an aspiring member of parliament. The Swazi
Observer reported (18 May 2018) that the sponsorship was in the form of
prize money that would be paid at the end of the football season and after the
election had been held.
The newspaper reported the
clubs’ representatives questioned the timing of the sponsorship and rejected
the offer. One club boss told the Observer
that aspiring MPs had also tried to manipulate them in the past.
There was a report that police
in Swaziland were investigating possible election corruption
concerning a former government minister accused of bribing people with promises
of food parcels for their votes.
Poverty-stricken
textile workers said they sold their votes for cash
and chicken pieces. The Swazi
Observer reported sitting members
of parliament had sent their agents into factories to buy up votes in the
industrial town of Matsapha. People said they were persuaded to register as
residents of the surrounding areas as opposed to their chiefdoms of origin.
Other textile workers in
Nhlangano said groups of 50 or 60 of them had been given free lunches by
sponsors of people keen to win seats in parliament. They also said transport
costs to and from work had been paid. The Swazi
Observer reported on Friday (15 June 2018) that some outgoing MPs were
involved.
Residents at Mbangweni complained
of nepotism when four
people selected to assist in the election were from the same family. The Swazi
Observer reported Inkhosatana Gelane, the acting KoNtshingila chief,
saying they were ‘loyal and respectful residents’.
Many residents in areas including Engwenyameni, Madadeni, and Lavumisa, said they would
boycott the election because
they were dissatisfied with how constituency boundaries had been drawn.
Days before registration
closed EBC Chair Chief Gija Dlamini told media that all persons nominated
for election would
be vetted by police.
At past elections people only got to select 55 of 65
members of the House of Assembly. The King chose the other 10. At this election
there will be an additional four seats for people to vote for. It has not been
announced how many members the King will choose but the Swaziland Constitution
allows him to pick up to ten.
As in previous years, none of the 30 members of the Swazi Senate will be elected by the people; the King will choose 20 and the other 10 will be chosen by members of the House of Assembly.
As in previous years, none of the 30 members of the Swazi Senate will be elected by the people; the King will choose 20 and the other 10 will be chosen by members of the House of Assembly.
See also
PEOPLE
NOT ELECTING THEIR GOVERNMENT
CHORUS
AGAINST UNDEMOCRATIC ELECTION GROWS
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