By Musa Mdluli

MBABANE:Police Spokesperson Senior Superintendent Phindile Vilakati and other senior police officers are still loyal to ex-National Commissioner Isaac Magagula who controls a faction within the law enforcement agency.

It has been disclosed that, National Commissioner Vusi Masango found himself responding to this Swaziland News last week as Phindile Vilakati and some cops within the Communications Department take orders from ex-National Commissioner Senator Isaac Mmemo Magagula. 

Senator Magagula once tried to influence the then National Commissioner William Tsintsibala Dlamini to arrest editor Zweli Martin Dlamini for writing critical articles against him and exposing him for deleting fingerprints with an alleged intention to employ convicted criminals within the police service, the matter was then handled Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) and subsequently sabotaged.

Tsintsibala, the then National Commissioner invited both Magagula and the editor for a meeting at the Police Headquarters in 2018, the late National Commissioner then told Magagula in the presence of Dlamini that while “serving as the National Commissioner”, the editor will never be arrested for writing news but police are free to arrest him if he committed other crimes.

Magagula wanted Tsintsabala to enforce a warrant of arrest against the editor but the late National Commissioner refused and urged Isaac Magagula to engage the editor within the journalism structures if he wrote something that requires clarification.

“Mine ngiyamangala kutsi akavalelwa ngani lona ngoba phela warrant of arrest ngashiya yentiwe,” Senator Isaac Magagula who was accompanied by his children told the then National Commissioner during the meeting.

Senator Isaac Magagula then spoke in Parliament, demanding to know why the Ministry of Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) was not taking action and close this publication, the Swaziland News is registered in South Africa and it’s website and all online platforms cannot be closed by anyone within Eswatini.

Even though Spokesperson Phindile Vilakati has been refusing to respond to this publication and clarify issues after taking instructions from the previous boss who promoted her Senator Isaac Magagula, current National Commissioner Vusi Manoma Masango has been responding and now doing the job of a Spokesperson.

But it remains unclear, if Vilakati will hold the position for a while amid power struggle with Isaac Magagula controlling a faction within the police service, some senior cops allegedly questioned Vilakati’s credibility, resulting to the current National Commissioner doing her job by responding to this publication.

Efforts to reach the Police Spokesperson proved unsuccessful at the time of compiling this report.

On another note, a senior police officer told this publication that, the Office of the Police Spokesperson has been incompetent for some time now after the late Deputy Commissioner Vusi Masuku,

The senior cop questioned if it’s even proper for journalists to find themselves contacting a highly respected and most senior officer -the National Commissioner just because the Office of the Spokesperson is taking orders somewhere.

“The National Commissioner Vusi Masango never issued any order stopping Phindile Vilakati from responding, this is a Commissioner who understands the role of the media because one day, you will have a very critical story that you may wish to clarify only to find that, you destroyed the bridges. A relationship with the media does not mean you will always respond and clarify all issues, you maintain a “no comment” sometimes because not all State security issues must be confirmed or discussed in the media. The Swaziland News editor recently criticized Masango but he is responding to his questions and clarifying issues. We then received information that Phindile Vilakati is fighting Isaac Magagula’s issues with the editor. What does the police as an organization gain by not responding because, we read police stories almost everyday?. Samangala sonkhe nasibona kutsi National Commissioner uyaphendvula kutsi kani Phindile order uyitsatsa kubani?”, said the senior cop.