MTHANDENI, BACEDE VOTED IN TINKHUNDLA ELECTIONS AND DAVID SIMELANE BOYCOTTED
In an interesting turn of events, incarcerated former Hosea Member of Parliament Bacede Mabuza and Ngwempisi former Member of Parliament Mthandeni Dube have both voted in the primary elections while convicted serial killer David Simelane boycotted the elections.
A source who was part of the electoral officers responsible for conducting elections inside the Matsapha Correctional Services told The Bridge that most of the inmates decided to participate in the elections while Simelane decided to boycott. Mthandeni had openly come out to distance himself from the call to boycott the elections. Meanwhile, it was not clear what position Mabuza had taken.
The source said a majority of inmates decided to participate in the elections and that they were surprised when they saw both Mabuza and Dube casting their votes. “The one notable person who did not vote was David Simelane. He was called and he simply did not come to vote.We could not tell whether Simelane was consciously boycotting the elections or just didn’t see the need since he has been arrested for way over 20 years now, so it is likely that he did not even know who to vote for or did not care about the entire process altogether,” said the source.
Among some of the prominent inmates who voted was convicted Manzini businessman Mfanukhona Kakona Dlamini. Inmates are categorized as part of special voters according to the Elections Boundaries Commission (EBC)