Swazi Observer

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WE GO WITH MDLADLA - ECSPONENT INVESTORS

By MMELI MKWANAZI | 2024-09-04

OVER 300 Emaswati that invested with Ecsponent Eswatini (Pty) Ltd yesterday heeded to Judge Khontaphi Manzini’s call to appear at the High Court in person to verify that S.V Mdladla and Associates is representing them in the pending court matter.

This comes after Judge Manzini, through a court order, required some of the over 1 000 investors to appear in person so as to verify their claims that the lawfirm would represent them in recouping the millions they invested with Ecsponent Eswatini.

As early as 9am, the High Court was packed with a third of the investors.

They consisted of government organisations, non-governmental organisations, retired individuals, pensioners, churches and beneficiaries of investors who have since passed on.

In June, Judge Manzini issued a default judgment in favour of the investors, ordering that Ecsponent Limited SA, GetBucks Limited SA, Dave van Niekerk, Edwin Soonius, and Anthony Hay repay E335 240 000 which was invested by over 1 000 emaswati with Ecsponent, which is now known as ESW Investment Group (ESWIG).

The money was invested by a number of individuals and other entities in Ecsponent to obtain higher returns. However, E335 240 000 of the invested E406 932 005.55 was allegedly transferred to South Africa, and the investors want their money back.

The other defendants in the matter, which are FSRA, former FSRA CEO Sandile Dlamini and Lindiwe Vilakati, are opposing the matter, hence no order against them was issued.

The FSRA, which is the first respondent, was represented by attorney Simphiwe Mkhumane. Sandile and Lindiwe who are the sixth and seventh respondents, respectively, were represented by Mxolisi Dlamini from Dynasty Inc while attorney Phesheya Maphalala and Sidumo Mdladla from S.V Mdladla and Associates represented the investors.

As the agenda of the day began, lawyer Mxolisi Dlamini submitted that there was an issue he wanted to raise on behalf of his clients concerning recent developments which came to the fore in parliament.

Conflict

He said there would be a conflict of interest in relation to lawyer Mdladla regarding the Ecsponent Eswatini forensic report, which was tabled in parliament.

He stated that Mdladla and Associates would have a conflict of interest since they themselves were appointed to act as company secretary of Ecsponent Eswatini in 2018.

However, Maphalala objected to this as he argued that the report itself had not yet been adopted by Parliament as he said it was yet to be debated.

He further said the objective was to do what had been planned for the day’s agenda given the fact that all parties agreed that yesterday and today would be strictly focused on the investors proving that they were represented by his office.

Investors

He also submitted any delay would mean that the hundreds of investors travelled all the way in order to be assisted in court for nothing.

Lawyer Mxolisi said from the instructions he had, his view was that yesterday’s exercise would not proceed before the forensic report issue was dealt with but this was not received well by the investors whose murmurs showed their dismay at what he was saying.

Judge Manzini said in her view, they should not disturb the proceedings as other matters would be dealt with at a later stage.

After much confusion as to how the investors would be brought forward in an alphabetical order before Judge Manzini, the exercise ended up flowing seamlessly by lunch time after the investors were offered lunch.

This went on until at about 8pm. Today, more investors are expected at the High Court.

Two months after the report’s completion, the ministry of finance presented a redacted version to Parliament. Redaction involves obscuring parts of a document before its release, which can prevent a full understanding of the facts.

The 195-page document presented to Parliament was modified to allegedly conceal confidential information, with significant portions blacked out, rendering crucial information, such as the names of individuals who failed to meet their financial obligations and those interviewed during the report's compilation, unreadable.

There are also claims that some Members of Parliament were being lobbied not to adopt the forensic report.

According to parliament’s procedure, it is expected that MPs will debate the report and eventually adopt it.

It was also reported in other news publications that some MPs relayed that there were certain forces lobbying them to reject the report in its current form and demand the real report.

It was gathered that those lobbying for the rejection claimed that the report might have been altered, with some information having been excluded from it.

Investor’s business closed – Mdladla

WHILE efforts are being made to recoup monies invested by over 1 000 locals, another investor’s business is said to be closed.

This was said by senior lawyer Sidumo Mdladla from S.V Mdladla and Associates. He was addressing Judge Khontaphi Manzini after lawyer Mxolisi Dlamini from Dynasty Inc. wanted the court to halt yesterday’s proceedings, stating there was a conflict of interest in the matter regarding Mdladla.

“There is another investor who has since closed down their business due to not receiving a return on what they invested. Let us not dance with these court technicalities and just proceed with today’s agenda. We cannot afford to waste this court’s time,” he submitted.

Ex-speaker, other notable figures among investors

FORMER House of Assembly Speaker Petros Mavimbela was amongst the notable figures who formed part of the investors at the High Court.

He with many others, have since entrusted S.V Mdladla and Associates to recover the monies they invested with Ecsponent Swaziland. Others were former principal secretary (PS) in the ministry of health Almon Mbingo, Reverend Canon Dlamini, former King’s bodyguard Ngwane Dlamini and convicted murderer Themba Masimula’s mother, Ntombi Dlamini.

‘I invested E50 000, but received E2 100’

ONE of the Ecsponent Eswatini (Pty) Ltd investors informed this publication that he invested E50 000, however, in return he received a meagre E2 100.

This was the sad tale of Magamecile Dlamini (57) from Luve who was amongst the hundreds of Emaswati who appeared in person at the High Court to verify their claims and mandate to S.V Mdladla and Associates lawfirm, which is representing them.

Dlamini said his investment matured in 2022, but he approached Ecsponent Eswatini and informed them that he would like to continue with his investment.

However, both parties arranged that he would receive E700 on a monthly basis.

He stated that he re-invested his original investment seeing that his investment was bearing fruits but to his surprise, he only received the E700 for a period of only three months, which brought the total amount he received to E2100.

“I honestly feel as though I should have withdrawn my investment and the returns as well as I would have done a lot of things with my original investment and the returns as well. Now I have lost everything,” he stated.

Another investor who preferred anonymity stated that after she lost money she had invested amounting to about E150 000, she wished she could have dug a hole and put her hard earned cash there as opposed to investing in Ecsponent Eswatini.

“Sengiyatisola, kube mane ngagubha umgodzi ngafihla lemali yami.” she said. She further disclosed that over a nine-year period since her investment to date, she personally knew about 20 investors who have since passed on due to stroke, stress and other ailments after their monies vanished into thin air with Ecsponent Eswatini.

When asked whether she still had hopes of getting her money back through the assistance of S.V Mdladla Attorneys, she said she had lost all hope but insisted she still wanted her money back, which was why she heeded to the call when summoned to court.

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