NOW THE PHONE COMPANY NEEDS CASH

Another day, another cash crisis caused by the Swaziland Government’s mismanagement of the economy.

This time it’s the Swaziland Post and Telecommunications Corporation (SPTC) which needs E409 million (about US$60 million) to keep on going.

Nelisiwe Shongwe, Minister of Information, Communication and Technology, wants to sell off the 21 percent of shares in the mobile phone operator MTN that SPTC owns to raise the money, but the Swazi Cabinet has blocked the move.

The government has decided to provide a short-term budget subvention to SPTC to try to ease the cash-flow problem. But where the government will find the money is not clear.

Shongwe said the huge financial injection would not only help support the operations of the SPTC, but also address a pension fund deficit.

The Times of Swaziland, the kingdom’s only independent daily newspaper, reports Shongwe saying, SPTC has cash-flow problems and needs money. A major cause of the problem is a huge investment SPTC has made in the Fixed Wireless Network (a joint venture with MTN), also known as ‘One’, which like the rest of the economy has been badly mismanaged by government.

SPTC has been at the centre of controversy and a Parliament Select Committee was tasked with investigating irregularities in Shongwe’s intervention in the transfer of SPTC shares and regulatory powers. The committee found, ‘SPTC is struggling financially and such position has been demonstrated to government on several occasions.’

See also

BILLS UNPAID: CARS OFF THE ROAD

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2010/12/bills-unpaid-cars-off-road.html

BILL UNPAID: GOVERNMENT SILENCED

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2010/12/bill-unpaid-government-silenced.html

MORE GOVERNMENT HEALTH CUTS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2010/12/more-government-health-cuts.html

GOVERNMENT CUTS: ‘PEOPLE WILL DIE’

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2010/12/government-cuts-people-will-die.html

GOVERNMENT NOT PAYING ITS BILLS

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2010/12/government-not-paying-its-bills.html

GOVERNMENT CAN’T PAY THE RENT

http://swazimedia.blogspot.com/2010/12/government-cant-pay-rent.html

SWAZILAND PROPAGANDA WON’T WASH

The Swaziland Government lives in a world of its own if it thinks the state-run news agency to be launched soon will improve the image of the kingdom abroad.

The Swazi Parliament adopted a report on the setting up of the Swaziland News Agency (SWANA) which Information, Communication and Technology Minister Nelisiwe Shongwe said, ‘would report accurately about news in Swaziland that would want to be accessed in particular by foreigners’.

She said the kingdom’s leaders had complained about what was reported in foreign countries about Swaziland and SWANA would assist in giving out ‘proper information’.

What she meant, of course, was that the foreign media would publish propaganda on behalf of King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, and his government led by Barnabas Dlamini, the illegally-appointed Prime Minister.

And she expects the foreign media to pay a fee for the privilege of receiving lies from them.

The rulers in Swaziland have had it too good for years from the media in the kingdom. The state controls the news on all radio and one of the two TV stations that operate. The other TV station and the ‘independent’ newspapers never criticise the king and censor themselves over sensitive stories. There is a tiny alternative media in the kingdom – the Nation magazine is the most well known – but these cannot compete against the government lies.

When it comes to the international media, the government has no control. The idea behind SWANA is that media will take ‘news’ from the agency and just reprint it (or broadcast it) as it comes.

It shows that Swazi politicians have no idea what free media do. Do they really think that an international broadcaster such as the BBC or CNN is going to uncritically report that (to take a current example) hunger and poverty in Swaziland is improving, just because the government says it is so? They will do what all good journalists do and instigate to find out the facts.

And Swazi rulers can’t escape the facts: Swaziland is not a democracy and it is controlled by people from King Mswati down who put their own interest before the majority of people. That’s the ‘story’ from Swaziland and it will continue to be told whatever ‘news’ SWANA puts out.

SWAZI SENATORS ATTACK FACEBOOK

Swaziland senators are so worried that the truth about the Swazi Royal Family is getting out to the wider world they want to censor the Internet.

And top of their list of victims is Facebook, the social networking site.

Swaziland’s Minister of Information, Communication and Technology, Nelisiwe Shongwe told the senate that the kingdom, ruled by King Mswati III, sub-Saharan Africa’s last absolute monarch, is looking at laws to control cyberspace.

Shongwe was reacting to complaints that Swazi reporters were leaking information to the South Africa media that was censored in Swaziland.

Although they didn’t say so out loud, they were referring to the recent sex scandal involving the 12th wife of King Mswati, 22-year-old Nothando Dube, (also known as Inkhosikati LaDube) and Ndumiso Mamba, the (now former) Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister.

Media in Swaziland have been banned from reporting this, but South African newspapers and Internet sites all over the world have published news and comment on their alleged adultery.

One senator, Ndileka Dlamini, rather sinisterly called on the Swazi Government to ‘deal’ with any local reporter found to be leaking ‘sensitive news’.

She called for a sense of ‘patriotism’ from journalists.

‘They must learn to respect the country and know that what they are doing is wrong. They must know that action will be taken against them for doing such,’ the Times of Swaziland quoted Dlamini saying during a senate debate.

Senator Khephu Cindzi shared similar sentiments and asked the minister if social networking sites could be regulated to protect the country’s image.

There must be control on things like Facebook because it is being abused. They discuss sensitive issues anyhow, he said.

In response Shongwe said the senators’ concerns were justified. ‘It is true that sometimes the content is not good to be publicised and, besides, children use these sites. As part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) we are looking at cyber laws to protect ourselves from such things,’ she said.

I flatter myself that I am one of the culprits complained of. So in the spirit of freedom of the media I invite any Swaziland senator to defend their position on the Swazi Media Commentary Facebook site. Senators just click here.