In a shocking revelation to Parliament, The Luke Commission’s (TLC) former employees have alleged that the Sidvokodvo-based institution has been involved in the distribution of expired medical drugs and supplies to unsuspecting patients throughout the country.
They have, therefore, formally asked Parliament to engage the Ministry of Health in an enquiry to ascertain whether the facility is receiving the relevant health inspections to curb this alleged act.
This was through a petition they delivered in Parliament yesterday, which was received by Assistant Clerk at Table Mathokoza Dlamini.
The strongly worded petition, which also contained other serious allegations, was delivered by the former employees, represented by Nkosinathi Nhlabatsi and Ntokozo Mabundza.
“We pray for the MPs to engage the Ministry of Health in an enquiry to ascertain whether TLC is receiving the relevant health inspections wherein, as witnessed by the former employees, the institution has been involved in the practice of dispensing expired medical drugs and supplies to patients across the nation,” alleged the former employees in their petition.
The former employees also asked Parliament to engage the Prime Minister’s Office and the Ministry of Health in investigating the alleged misappropriation of government funds by TLC. The investigation, according to the employees, should cover the 2024/2025 and 2025/2026 financial years.
“TLC is a US-registered non-profit organisation now imposing profit on a point-of-sale medical care service at exorbitant prices,” they alleged.
The former employees also asked Parliament to engage the US Embassy, PEPFAR/USAID and NERCHA in a collaborative effort to ensure full accountability for the appropriation and possible misappropriation of funds or subventions released to TLC.
They alleged that this was necessary because many staff members, including those delivering the petition, were witnesses to TLC’s alleged non-compliance with fair labour practices while serving under collaborative Eswatini government, PEPFAR and USAID-funded programmes.
The former employees further alleged that they had not been receiving overtime pay, fringe benefits or service packages and on-call pay, and had been receiving salaries without alignment to the gazette, among other concerns.
“The relevant offices or ministries should investigate the witnessed conduct of TLC pertaining to the charging of medical supplies received from CMS, donors or through government subventions. Furthermore, Parliament should investigate how a non-profit organisation like TLC is implementing a billing system at substantial pricing to patients,” added the former employees.
They further urged Parliament to help them receive compensation for alleged unfair dismissals, ENPF contributions, unpaid overtime and on-call hours.
They stated that this should be a directive to TLC from Parliament, effective within two weeks after its issuance.
“We pray for Parliament to engage the relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, in a possible investigation of institutional racism and racialism at TLC. The current staff and ex-staff have witnessed the gross misconduct of the institution, where differentiated treatment and pay is preferred for foreign nationals against Emaswati who hold similar qualifications, experience and effort,” further alleged the former employees.
This comes at a time when the TLC management filed an urgent application at the High Court on July 13, seeking to stop the former employees from posting defamatory information on social media about the health facility.
The organisation is represented by Nomfundo Hlophe.
TLC cited former employees Nkosinathi Makhava Nhlabatsi and Ntokozo Michael Mabuza as the first and second respondents, respectively, while Sydney Maseko is cited as the third respondent.
The organisation was seeking an order interdicting the respondents, or anyone acting on their behalf, from engaging in alleged harassment, cyberbullying and defamatory publications directed at the organisation through Facebook, WhatsApp, TikTok, X, formerly Twitter, and other social media platforms.
It also wanted the respondents ordered to remove all existing publications within 24 hours of the court order and publish a public retraction stating that the allegations against The Luke Commission were not supported by any judicial finding.
According to the founding affidavit deposed to by Executive Director Echo Nomsa Vanderwal, the organisation has built its reputation over many years through humanitarian and medical work, and its credibility is essential for donor funding, public confidence, government partnerships, international collaborations and the delivery of healthcare services.
The Luke Commission maintained that all the allegations were false, malicious and unsupported by any factual or legal findings.
Vanderwal argued that while freedom of expression was constitutionally protected, it did not extend to false and defamatory statements.
“Freedom of expression is a fundamental right, but it is not absolute. It does not extend to the publication of false, malicious and defamatory statements,” she stated.
The organisation further submitted that any labour disputes should be determined through the Industrial Court rather than through social media.
It argued that the continued publications threatened its reputation and could undermine relationships with international donors, development partners and government institutions.
According to the affidavit, the organisation fears that any loss of donor confidence could jeopardise healthcare and humanitarian programmes provided to thousands of locals and place jobs at risk.
