BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Thulisile Dladla has heeded to a call by His Majesty King Mswati III.
Dladla has on April 7, 2025 went to Madlangemphisi Inkhundla, with an intention to find out how houses for the elderly people in that Inkhundla can be constructed.
This follows the call by His Majesty King Mswati 111 of constructing 10 houses for vulnerable families in Madlangemphisi. This was during his visit to Madlangemphisi Inkhundla over a month ago.
Thee DPM, together with Inkhundla council, under the leadership of Madlangemphisi Member of Parliament (MP) Allen Vilane, have done a verification exercise to determine the people who are in dire need of this assistance.
The Inkhundla council has already identify some of the beneficiaries, who do not have proper housing structures.
This happe two days after the DPM officially opened four houses and a neighborhood care in the Hhohho region .
The first house was at Siphocosini Inkhundla. Tengetile Shabangu (36), whose husband (a police officer) was killed in 2021, and her in-laws evicted her with her three children at Ekufikeni. Since then, she has been staying with her sister along with her children. This year, she was allocated land, and the government of Eswatini constructed a two-room house for her, which will still be modified.
The second household at Ntfonjeni Inkhundla in the Hhelehhele area belonged to 46-year-old Siphiwe Madlopha. For over a year, she been living in a tent after her house collapsed during a storm. The local community also allocated her a piece of land, where her house was constructed.
The third household at Timphisini Inkhundla for Gogo Tentile Mamba La Motsa (72) was also opened. Her initial house collapsed, and she had been living in an old stick and mud house that is on the verge of collapsing as well. This house was funded by the Philip Morris Foundation through the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office.
At Mayiwane Inkhundla, the Deputy Prime Minister opened a neighborhood care point and a house at Herefords belonging to the late Correctional Officer, Mthayi Dlamini.
The NCP accommodates 76 children of various ages, providing them with informal education and at least one meal per day. Sinqobile NCP has been receiving food aid from World Vision Eswatini and ADRA. Previously, there no structure, and one day the DPM, while passing by, she saw several children gathering under a tree. Upon inquiring, she learned about the children’s plight and was moved by compassion, prompting her to request the construction of a proper structure. The DPM further promised that the entire area would be fenced to prevent the children from playing on the road, as the NCP is located close to the road.
During the DPM’s visit, she was accompanied by the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee Gcina Magagula, Ntonjeni MP Raymond Dlamini, Timphisini MP Thulani Nsingwane and Mayiwane MP Sicelo Dlamini. Others included the DPM’s and NDMA staff. The families visited received food from the DPM’s Office, Royal Eswatini Police Service and sponges as well as beds and clothes cabins from Montigny Company.
It looks like Government has intensified the programme of building houses for the vulnerable people. According to the annual performance report for the Deputy Prime Minister’s Office (DPMO), 93 houses were built for the vulnerable people in a space of 10 months.
(Pic: DPMO)
