King Mswati III of Swaziland has denied ordering the men in his country to marry more than one wife or face imprisonment.
The government of Swaziland said the issue was never discussed at anytime.
A statement released by the government on Monday and signed by its spokesperson, Percy Simelane, and available on Bulawayo24.com blamed the Zambia Observer newspapers for the report, asking it to substantiate its claim.
Part of the statement read, “In the wake of several poisonous reports published in some foreign newspapers, social media platforms and other forums purported to be an official statement by His Majesty, King Mswati III, Government wishes to state the following:
“The current dispatch titled ‘Marry more wives or face jail,’ quoting the King is not only an insult to the monarchy but a disgrace to journalism.
“His Majesty has not made any pronouncement to that effect and it has never been an issue raised by Emaswatini.”
A report had said that King Mswati III of Swaziland who has 15 wives has ordered men in his country to marry two or more wives or face jail term.
According to the said report, it claimed that the declaration was made in Mbabane Swaziland that men will from June, 2019 be required to marry at least two or more wives or be jailed in their failure to do so.
The report further claimed that the said king has 15 wives and 25 children, while his father and predecessor has more than 70 wives and 150+ children, and also claimed that there are more women than men in the country making it very difficult for young ladies to get married.
According to him, it claimed that men from Swaziland are therefore, required and expected to take more wives so that every woman gets a husband.