Who speaks on behalf of the Tshivhase Royal Family and who are the real leaders of the family? These questions feature prominently in the current row concerning the appointment of chiefs by Mailausumbwa Kennedy Tshivhase.

Last month, the Thohoyandou High Court nullified the appointment of chiefs in the Tshipako area. The court also granted an interdict prohibiting Thovele Tshivhase from appointing chiefs without the knowledge and consent of the Nemavhola Royal Council.

In a letter addressed to the Limpopo premier, the relevant MEC and the provincial house of traditional leaders, the "Tshivhase Royal Family" lashes out at Thovhele Tshivhase and accuses him of malpractices and abusing his powers. The letter is signed by Leslie Tshivhase and Fhatuwani Tshivhase as the respective interim chairperson and interim secretary of the Tshivhase royal family.

This week the Tshivhase royal family, through its spokesperson, Thovhele Luvhaivhai Tshivhase, came out spitting fire. He said Leslie was not a member of the family. In a document titled "Who is Leslie Nyadzani Tshivhase?” Luvhaivhai Tshivhase says the family is disturbed by the utterances by Leslie, an "unknown person to the family and his group".

According to Luvhaivhai Tshivhase, the family is dismayed by the utterances of Leslie and is of the opinion that he does not represent the views of the family as he is not a family member. He said Leslie Tshivhase and his group had been served with letters on 25 March 2013, requesting him to furnish the royal family with certified copies of documents identifying himself, his mother and his father. He was given seven days to respond, which he apparently did not do.

"Maybe he wanted to say he is the chairperson of his family, but not the Tshivhase royal family. He should tell the nation which of the royal family members appointed him and where. It has come to our attention that Leslie is collecting names and signatures from the street from especially those who are illiterate," said Luvhaivhai Tshivhase. He said Vho-Makhadzi Vho-Londolani Muofhe Mufhandu, one of the senior Tshivhase royal council members, discovered that her name had been signed fraudulently and she had made an affidavit to withdraw her signature.

He also responded to the allegation made that the Limpopo premier had given R10 000 to Mailausumbwa Kennedy Tshivhase. "The R10 000 referred to was promised to a malende traditional dance group who performed for the first lady of Limpopo when the premier paid Mailausumbwa Kennedy Tshivhase a visit," he explained.

Luvhaivhai Tshivhase appealed to the community and traditional leaders within the Tshivhase dynasty not to associate themselves with the unknown Leslie Tshivhase who is claiming to be chairperson of the Tshivhase royal family. “The Tshivhase royal council and Tshivhase royal family are distancing themselves from any actions and statements made by the so-called Leslie Tshivhase, as he does not represent the Tshivhase family," he said.

As far as the Nemavhola case is concerned, Luvhaivhai denied having received any documents and stated that they knew nothing about the order. “We are still content with the installation of chiefs and we know we have not breached any government rule,” said Luvhaivhai.

Leslie Tshivhase, on the other hand, is adamant that he is of royal blood and that he was born into the family. "My mother was married to Rasimphi Tshivhase," he said and explained that there were two boys and two girls. "Luvhaivhai is the one who does not belong to the Tshivhase family. He is a Mphephu, who has just changed his surname. I do not want to delve deeper into that, but what I am worried about is who is he to question my relationship with the family? Please do your investigations and you will find that these people are just confusing people when they know the truth," added Leslie Tshivhase.