The government has rejected claims that Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini interfered with the Judiciary.
Acting Government Spokesperson Thabile Mdluli said the prime minister’s remarks in Parliament were made in fulfilment of his constitutional duty to answer questions from Members of Parliament and were never intended to influence judicial decisions.
This is contained in a statement issued by Mdluli in response to Chief Justice Bheki Maphalala’s assertions that political interference in the operations of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) was fuelling corruption and undermining the Commission’s independence.
She explained that the prime minister’s comments were made while responding to MPs’ questions on the country’s fight against corruption and were directed at encouraging the ACC to continue pursuing investigations even where previous applications for warrants of arrest had not succeeded.
According to government, the prime minister’s position was that the ACC should not abandon investigations simply because warrants had not been granted in earlier instances. Instead, he said the Commission should continue gathering evidence and make fresh applications where the legal threshold had been met.
Mdluli stressed that the prime minister neither questioned judicial discretion nor sought to direct judges on how to exercise their constitutional mandate.
“The remarks neither questioned nor sought to influence the exercise of judicial discretion. They did not purport to attribute responsibility to the Judiciary for any investigative outcome, nor were they intended to direct, advise or influence any judicial officer in the discharge of judicial functions,” she said.
She added that any interpretation suggesting otherwise was regretted because it did not reflect either the intention or substance of the prime minister’s remarks.
In what appears to be a call to ease tensions between the Executive and the Judiciary, government said issues affecting the relationship between the two arms of government had traditionally been resolved through private institutional engagement rather than public exchanges.
“The prime minister acknowledges the longstanding tradition of mutual respect and institutional cooperation that has characterised the relationship between the Executive and the Judiciary,” Mdluli said.
She added that the prime minister remained committed to preserving that tradition and believed any misunderstanding could be resolved through respectful dialogue within the appropriate constitutional framework.
Government also reaffirmed its commitment to the constitutional doctrine of separation of powers, saying it fully recognised the independence of the Judiciary as a cornerstone of constitutional governance and the rule of law.
On the fight against corruption, Mdluli said government remained determined to fulfil the mandate given by His Majesty King Mswati III and the resolutions of Sibaya, insisting that this commitment should not be interpreted as interference with independent institutions.
She said the Executive remained committed to providing institutions responsible for preventing, investigating and prosecuting corruption with the support necessary to execute their statutory mandates independently, professionally, impartially and without fear, favour or prejudice.
Mdluli said strengthening those institutions was essential to ensuring justice was administered fairly and maintaining public confidence in the country’s governance institutions.
GOVT DIRECTS CJ TO ESTABLISH COMPENSATION PROCESS
Government has clarified that the Office of the Prime Minister has no constitutional or statutory mandate to process compensation claims arising from losses allegedly suffered during the 2021 social unrest.
In a statement issued yesterday, Acting Government Spokesperson Thabile Mdluli expressed government’s sympathy to Chief Justice Bheki Maphalala, as well as to all individuals, businesses and institutions affected during the unrest.
However, she said the assessment, processing and determination of compensation claims were handled through established legal and administrative mechanisms, not the Office of the Prime Minister.
“Any person or institution seeking compensation is advised to pursue the established legal and administrative mechanisms that government has put in place for that purpose,” Mdluli said.
She added that the procedures applied equally to all affected persons and institutions, in line with the principles of equality before the law, administrative fairness and the orderly administration of public affairs.
