BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – His Majesty’s Correctional Services (HMCS) has presented five cows and E50 000 to Their Majesties.
This happened today (Friday, August 2, 2024) during the Correctional Services Day and the 16th pass-out parade of the new correctional officers. The gifts from the HMCS were presented by Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Prince Simelane, in his capacity as a minister responsible for the HMCS.
Prince Simelane stated that three cows belonged to His Majesty the King, while two of them belonged to Her Majesty the Indlovukazi. The minister further mentioned that the HMCS presented a cheque of E50 000, which would be given to Philani Maswati Charity Organisation so that it could help sustain better lives for the elderly people.
On top of that, Prince Simelane mentioned that the HMCS also presented different kinds of vegetables to Their Majesties. Meanwhile, the minister stated to Their Majesties that even though the HMCS had improved significantly, there were still challenges that could hinder the work of this department. He said there were lack of resources that affected officers to be compromised when doing their work.
He said for instance, there was a shortage of officers. There were 11 officers who retired, three died, four resigned, nine died, and no one resigned. He said in a normal situation, one officer had to take care of five offenders and they were still far from that.
The overcrowding was another challenge, according to the minister. He said the inmate carrying capacity of their facilities was 2 660 yet the average presence of offenders was currently at 4 300. He also said the industrial machines were old and could not be found, as they were scarce. He said this resulted in a small number of offenders being rehabilitated.
