Without symptoms and outside his country … the first death of a prime minister by Corona

After suffering with the new Corona virus, the prime minister of Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, the last absolute monarchy on the African continent, died on Sunday, official sources confirmed.

Deputy Prime Minister Themba Masuko announced the “sad and sudden departure of Prime Minister Ambrose Mandvolo Dlamini”, at the age of 52, to become the first prime minister to die after being infected with Corona.

Dlamini died in a South African hospital, where he underwent treatment in Johannesburg since early December, two weeks after contracting the infection.

Masuko added that the prime minister “died at noon on Sunday while receiving medical attention at a South African hospital,” without mentioning the cause of death.

Dlamini had revealed in mid-November that he was infected with the virus, but said he was in good condition and had not shown any symptoms.

Dlamini, businessman and newcomer to the world of politics, was appointed Prime Minister in October 2018, but the powers of this position are limited in Eswatini, where the current King Mswati III, who has been in power since 1986, controls Parliament and also appoints all the ministers.

Eswatini has recorded more than 6,700 coronavirus cases and 127 deaths among its population of 1.2 million.

The South African-based civil society organization “Swaziland Solidarity Network” accused the Iswani government of granting the Prime Minister special treatment by transferring him to a country enjoying better medical care.

According to figures from the World Bank in 2016 and 2017, more than 39 percent of the population of this closed and locked kingdom lives below the poverty line.