Durban — Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi has set the record straight on the use of the eNyokeni Royal Palace after media reports indicated that the palace was the official residence of Prince Simakade, who is challenging King Misuzulu for the throne, and there would be confrontation and bloodshed if the ceremony is not halted or another venue was not chosen.
Buthelezi, the traditional prime minister to the Zulu monarch and nation, clarified King Misuzulu’s authority over the royal palaces and said that as His Majesty King Misuzulu kaZwelithini prepares to hold the annual Reed Dance ceremony at eNyokeni Royal Palace on Saturday, September 17, 2022, it appears that some confusion has been created over the royal residences and who has rightful authority over them.
“In my capacity as traditional prime minister to the Zulu monarch and nation, I wish to resolve any controversy by providing the facts and the background to this matter.”
Buthelezi was responding to media reports on issues regarding the venue where the Zulu reed dance is expected to be held next weekend.
Reports said that King Misuzulu and his brother Prince Simakade are headed for another potential showdown over the venue to host the annual uMkhosi woMhlanga (Reed Dance) ceremony at eNyokeni Palace, Nongoma, where the prince resides. Prince Simakade is one of two princes who are separately challenging King Misuzulu’s throne.
Buthelezi said that during his time as chief minister of the erstwhile KwaZulu government, his administration began providing official residences to His Majesty the King.
“With government funds, the KwaZulu government built eNyokeni Royal Palace and Ingwavuma Royal Palace. We also renovated His Majesty’s grandfather’s palace at KwaDlamahlahla. There is also Osuthu Palace and KwaLinduzulu Palace,” Buthelezi said.
He said that with the dawn of the democratic era, the provincial government continued to maintain the king’s official residences with state funds.
“The royal palaces are thus under the authority of the reigning monarch. There is no leeway for the monarch to allot or bequeath an official residence to any of his children or to anyone else,” Buthelezi said.
He said that considering that the palaces are maintained with provincial funds, if any of the palaces were to be perceived as belonging to anyone other than His Majesty the King, there could no longer be an expectation for the state to maintain it.
eNyokeni Royal Palace has been the venue for traditional ceremonies for decades. It is not by any means unusual for the Reed Dance ceremony to take place there, for that has been the case each year since the reintroduction of the Reed Dance ceremony, Buthelezi said.
“I, therefore, note with concern the controversy reported in the media over claims that eNyokeni Royal Palace somehow ‘belongs’ to Prince Simakade. In truth, the only accommodation established at eNyokeni Royal Palace was for the late Regent, the mother of His Majesty the King. Apart from that, the late King Zwelithini established accommodation for me at eNyokeni as his traditional prime minister.”
He said that it is a matter of legal fact that all the royal palaces fall under the authority of His Majesty the reigning King. His Majesty thus has every right to choose any of the palaces as the venue for a traditional ceremony; and eNyokeni was established as the venue for traditional ceremonies even under His Majesty’s predecessor, the late King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu.
“On this basis, and in the interests of stability, I must caution Prince Mxolisi and Prince Simakade against the claims they are making in the media that His Majesty in any way lacks the authority to hold the Reed Dance ceremony at eNyokeni Royal Palace, and that, if it goes ahead, it will lead to bloodshed. Such threats are counter-productive and against the spirit of unity which we seek to create within the Zulu nation,” Buthelezi said.
He added that there can be no dispute over His Majesty the King’s right to use any of his official residences – as provided by the state to the reigning monarch – for purposes of traditional ceremonies that unite the Zulu nation.
Sister publication, the Sunday Tribune, reported on Sunday that King Misuzulu does not live in eNyokeni Palace and has not used it since the passing of his father, King Zwelithini.
Prince Mxolisi warned that failure by Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube to halt the ceremony or to have it held at an alternative venue may lead to confrontation and regrettably result in bloodshed.
Prince Mxolisi said a letter had been sent to Dube-Ncube that stated: “It has come to our attention that Prince Misuzulu kaZwelithini will be holding a reed dance ceremony at eNyokeni Royal Palace on September 17, 2022, following the one he held at Emachobeni Royal Palace.”
Prince Mxolisi said the palace in question was the official residence of Prince Simakade, who he referred to as the king. He said to have “prince” Misuzulu and his supporters come to the palace would be “an act of extreme provocation, and the consequences, if allowed to proceed, were too ghastly to contemplate”.
Daily News