Africa-Press – Eswatini. Prime Minister Russell Mmiso Dlamini has maintained his position that corruption is rampant across all three arms of government. The Prime Minister said a cabal has entrenched itself throughout the country’s governance structures. He also disclosed that the development of a National Anti-Corruption Strategy is underway to provide a comprehensive and coordinated framework for preventing and combating corruption.
The remarks are contained in the Prime Minister’s written responses to Parliament during consideration of the Report of the Prime Minister’s Office Portfolio Committee on the Debate of the Ministry’s First Quarter Performance Report for the Financial Year 2026/27.
The issue arose after Lobamba Lomdzala Member of Parliament Marwick Khumalo urged the Prime Minister to follow the law, arguing that the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) alone could not effectively fight corruption without the support of the Judiciary.
Khumalo said the ACC required the Judiciary to issue warrants of arrest and alleged that the Prime Minister had previously described the Judiciary as corrupt. He questioned who would issue warrants if the Judiciary had been accused of corruption, adding that this was the reason task teams were inefficient and commissions were not taking off.
He described the situation as really sad.
Responding to the concerns, the Prime Minister said he did not recall accusing the Judiciary of being corrupt.
“The Honourable Prime Minister does not recall ever accusing the Judiciary of being corrupt. However, the Honourable Prime Minister stands by prior sentiments that corruption is rampant across all three arms of Government and that the cabal has its tentacles across all three,” the written response states.
The Prime Minister also responded to questions from Matsanjeni North MP Sabelo Ndlangamandla, who sought clarity on what government was doing to curb the high rate of corruption and asked about the role of the Anti-Corruption Commission.
In his response, the PM said government had established the Anti-Corruption Task Team to strengthen coordination among institutions responsible for preventing, investigating and prosecuting corruption.
“The Prime Minister established the Anti-Corruption Task Team to strengthen coordination among institutions responsible for preventing, investigating, and prosecuting corruption, with the objective of reducing procedural bottlenecks and enhancing the effectiveness of the national anti-corruption framework,” he stated.
The Prime Minister further outlined additional measures government has taken to strengthen the country’s anti-corruption framework.
According to the written response, these include enhancing the investigative capacity of the Anti-Corruption Commission through the recruitment of additional investigators.
He also revealed that the National Anti-Corruption Policy had already been submitted to Cabinet for consideration.
“Government has also taken additional measures to strengthen the country’s anti-corruption architecture. These include enhancing the investigative capacity of the ACC through the recruitment of additional investigators, as well as the submission of the National Anti-Corruption Policy to Cabinet for consideration,” he stated.
In addition, the Prime Minister disclosed that work was underway on a National Anti-Corruption Strategy, which is intended to provide a coordinated approach to tackling corruption.
“Furthermore, the development of a National Anti-Corruption Strategy is underway to provide a comprehensive and coordinated framework for preventing and combating corruption,” the Prime Minister said.
The responses formed part of Parliament’s scrutiny of the Prime Minister’s Office First Quarter Performance Report for the 2026/27 financial year, during which Members of Parliament raised concerns over corruption, the effectiveness of existing anti-corruption institutions and the challenges affecting the prosecution of corruption-related cases.
