Muluzi appointed special envoy to Swaziland –Commonwealth

Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Kamalesh Sharma, has confirmed the appointment of former Malawi president Bakili Muluzi as a special envoy to Swaziland to continue a process of engaging the Kingdom to undertake further democratisation efforts in the run up to the 2018 elections.

Muluzi, who governed Malawi from 1994 and retired in 2004 at the end of his constitutional two-terms, returns to Swaziland this Saturday .

Commonwealth is pushing for the unbanning of political parties in Swaziland and were satisfied with Muluzi’s role when he led Commonwealth observer mission to Swaziland, and recommended the democratisation process after Swaziland’s September 2013 elections.

Muluzi said in his hvisit to Swaziland from 5 to10 July 2015, will be accompanied by Nita Yawanarajah, adviser and head of the Good Offices Section and political officer for southern Africa and Koffi Sawyer from the Commonwealth Secretariat.

The former Malawi leader who recently also chair a Commonwealth observer mission in Nigeria, said as per usual practice; he would hold discussions with a wide array of stakeholders, including King Mswati III, the government of Swaziland and civil society.

“I will then be able to make appropriate recommendations to the government of Swaziland and to the Secretary-General, accordingly, on the way forward,” said Muluzi.

Opposition politicians in King of Swaziland’s ‘monarchical democracy’ have accused King Mswati III regime as “ intolerant, intransigent and arrogant”

The tradition in Swaziland, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, is that parliamentary candidates are hand-picked by traditional chiefs loyal to King Mswati III.