BY MBONO MDLULI
MTFONGWANENI– Manqoba Sangweni, Ntsika Shongwe, and Zodwa Mkhatshwa now have great opportunities of becoming soldiers, as they have become victorious in the army (UEDF) recruitment race.
The race, which was conducted by the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (UEDF), took place at Mtfongwaneni Inkhundla centre in the afternoon of Tuesday, September 23, 2025. The race began at about 2:50pm, but before that, the aspiring soldiers started by taking instructions on how the recruitment exercise would be done. This was done from 2pm, the time at which the aspiring soldiers were instructed to have arrived at the centre. It was done after a prayer was done, marking the start of the exercise.
UEDF Brigadier General Thabo Luhlanga, who is head of the UEDF Recruitment Committee, is the one who issued instructions. He started by introducing other members of the recruitment committee, before informing the aspiring soldiers on how the recruitment would be done.
Luhlanga informed the hopefuls that they would run a race of 3.2 kilometres, which was the one that would determine the winner. They were told that the race would be two-fold. They would run from the starting point at the Inkhundla centre for a distance of 1.6kms, before covering another distance of 1.6kms when returning to the Inkhundla centre. This is what took place in Mafutseni and Nhlambeni Tinkhundla.
The recruitment exercise candidates were told that this time, there were no other exercises like jack-knife, sit-ups or push-ups.
Luhlanga mentioned that the race would be the only one determining the winners.
Among the males, Luhlanga said the first two winners would be considered, while the third, up to the sixth best finisher would be registered as reserves.
The reserves will be called only if the two best runners failed the other recruitment stages, such as vetting and medical checks.
Among the females, Luhlanga said only one best female would be considered. The second and third best finishers would be registered as reserves for the same reason as the one mentioned among the males.
Strict measures were put in place to ensure that the aspiring soldiers were from the chiefdoms forming Mtfongwaneni. Documents such as the identity (ID) cards were used to determine the authenticity of the whole exercise.
In fact, the committee made it clear that an original ID, not a copy or any other document, was needed. Chief codes were also used to determine if people were from the six chiefdoms or not.
After the aspiring soldiers were determined to be of Mtfongwaneni, they were stamped on their arms to determine that they were the rightful candidates for the exercise.
The recruits started running the race of 3.2 kilometres. Within 10 minutes, the first winner, Manqoba Sangweni, was determined. The other winners were determined thereafter. Shongwe was determined as a winner within 12 minutes of the start of the race. Mkhatshwa was identified within 15 minutes as a winner among the female participants. Winners of the race, in order of the race positions achieved, are as follows:
Males
Winners
Manqoba Sangweni
Ntsika Shongwe
Reserves
Manqoba Sihlongonyane
Neliswa Mabuza
Lethukuthula Ndlovu
Melusi Mamba
Females
Winner
Zodwa Mkhatshwa
Reserves
Nomalungelo Shongwe
Mandisa Shongwe
The recruits and the reserves are warned to always be available on their phones at all times and they should take care of themselves.
The women were warned against getting pregnant while waiting to be enrolled for training at Mbuluzi Army Barracks. Men were also warned and told that during medical examinations in the army, everything was checked to verify if they were fit for training or not. Therefore, they also needed to take care of themselves.
