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SNUS MEMBERS FREED AS DOCKET DISAPPEARS

By Bongiwe Dlamini | 2022-07-01

Manzini - After over a year since they were charged for allegedly burning down a police post, the two Swaziland National Union of Students (SNUS) members finally had their matter removed from the roll.

Bafanabakhe Sacolo and Siphosethu Mavimbela faced two counts; one for contravening the Public Order Act 12 of 2017 and the other for violating the Police Service Act 22 of 2018 in that they allegedly damaged a police post at Fairview and also burned a police flag, as well as allegedly insulting and holding some officers hostage, respectively.

They were arrested on May 21, 2021, the same day that they, together with a number of other people, had attended the late UNESWA law student Thabani Nkomonye’s memorial service that was held at St Paul’s Sports Ground.

According to their charge sheet, the duo allegedly damaged the police post and flag, to an estimated value of E100 000.

Meanwhile, the second count states that they held police officers who were on duty hostage, insulted, pelted them with stones and further threatened to burn them inside the police post.
For this, Sacolo and Mavimbela were said to have contravened Section 69(1) (k) of the Police Service Act 22 of 2018.

Section 69 (1) of the Act states that, ‘Any person not being a member of the police service commits an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to a fine not exceeding E5 000 or to imprisonment for a period not exceeding two years or both, if that person (k) uses or directs insulting or defamatory language through descriptions, misdemeanour or gestures or by any other representation to a police officer or police officers on duty, including abuse or misuse of any official facility in the care of police officers on duty.’

The matter had been pending before Senior Magistrate Sindisile Zwane at the Manzini Magistrate’s Court since 2021, until on Tuesday when it was removed from the court’s roll.
This was done because their docket went missing.

Magistrate Zwane said the matter was removed from the roll until the Crown had put its house in order.

When a matter is removed from a court’s roll, it means the judicial officer may not hear it until certain issues have been addressed by the prosecution.
This also means that after the issues have been addressed, the matter may be recalled back to court for trial.

Effectively, it means that in the event that the docket is recovered, the two would be summoned back to court as their trial would commence.

In court, Sacolo and Mavimbela were legally represented by Vusi Kunene.
It should be noted that when Sacolo, who was the Swaziland National Union of Students (SNUS) Secretary General at the time, and Mavimbela first appeared before court they were with three other co-accused namely; Khumbuza Nxumalo (56), Hlengiwe Magagula (22), and Bongumusa Gamedze (30).

Nxumalo, who was represented by Mhlengi Mabuza, faced the same charges as Sacolo and Mavimbela, while Hlengiwe and Bongumusa faced a charge of damaging windows at the Manzini Police Headquarters.

The damaged property was valued at E1 000.

For this, they were charged with breaching the Public Order Act 12 of 2017.
Also, Hlengiwe and Bongumusa’s second count was for intentionally holding some police officers at the police headquarters hostage, assaulted and insulted them while also threating to burn them alive.

Hlengiwe and Bongumusa were admitted to E3 000 bail each, while Sacolo, Mavimbela and Nxumalo were urged to apply for bail at the High Court where they were admitted to E50 000 bail each. However, they were ordered to pay E3 000 cash and E47 000 as a surety.

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