ADVERTISEMENT:
News - Date: 08 July 2013
Thovele Kennedy Tshivhase hit back this week and released a statement in which he lambasts the group of “rebels” who allegedly want to usurp his position.
Last week it was reported that a group, purporting to be the Tshivhase royal family, had denounced the leadership of Thovhele Kennedy Tshivhase and “relieved” him of his duties. The group, led by Lesley Tshivhase, allege that he is not the rightful royal heir as he was already born when his mother married into the Tshivhase family.
According to Lesley Tshivhase, the royal family has also requested the Limpopo government to withdraw its recognition of Thovhele Kennedy Tshivhase as senior traditional leader of the Tshivhase community with immediate effect and to cut the remuneration attached to the position.
In a press statement released on Tuesday (2 July), Thovhele Kennedy Tshivhase argues that the group under the leadership of Leslie Tshivhase has no right to try and remove him from his position. He says that people who believe the stories (that he is not the rightful incumbent) do not know the history of the Tshivhase clan.
According to the press release, the late chief, Prince Thikhathal Tshivhase, passed away in 1970. His only son, Midiavhathu Prince Kennedy Tshivhase, was only eight years old at the time. The Tshivhase royal council decided to appoint his uncle, Khotsimunene John Shavhani, as regent until the young Kennedy Tshivhase came of age.
When the time arrived for John Shavhani Tshivhase to hand over the chieftainship to Kennedy Tshivhase, he allegedly refused to do so. This battle eventually went to the courts and, following a lengthy battle by the different legal teams, the Special Court of Appeals in Bloemfontein ruled in favour of Kennedy Tshivhase in 1993. He was inaugurated as the Thovhele of the Tshivhase clan shortly afterwards.
“Twenty years later, Lesley wants to rescind the decision taken by the Appeals Court,” reads the statement by Thovhele Kennedy Tshivhase. He also accuses the group of “rebels” of using unlawful tactics to try and convince people that they have a rightful claim to the chieftainship. Among the things they accuse Lesley Tshivhase of, is that he had allegedly asked Vho Makhadzi Vho Londolani for her fingerprint (as) signature and got her to sign documents without understanding the contents thereof. “She totally renounced any attempt to remove Thovhele Kennedy Tshivhase by signing an affidavit to confirm that she does not support Lesley's attempts,” he says in the statement.
During a meeting held at the Mukumbani royal palace on Saturday (29th), the Tshivhase royal council, under leadership of Thovhele Kennedy Tshivhase, resolved to oppose any attempts to remove Kennedy Tshivhase as chief. “The chieftainship is not a political appointment where the incumbent can be replaced by another person. The chieftainship is an inherited position by male descendent from the same bloodline of the late chief. Thovhele MPK Tshivhase was the only male descendent of the late Thovhele Prince Thikhathali Tshivhase,” the statement reads.
Lesley Tshivhase, who is from the Rasimphi house, the house that is in power in the family, says the statement is devoid of all truth. “I am from the inner house and I know what I am talking about. I still stand by what I said earlier on. I did not pick this from the street and those who are turning the family's history and things the other way do not belong to our family. Prince Thikhathali Tshivhase died in 1966 and not 1970 as stated. When Prince was inaugurated as Thovhele, he was not yet married and whoever was born before that could not be his son as he was born out of wedlock,” says Lesley.
He says he heard about the meeting on the 29th of June 2013 but would not attend as he did not regard it as a meeting because it was called by Tshivhase himself and not the royal coucil. “Ever since the 'meeting' was held, there has been delegations who visited me from Kennedy Tshivhase, seeking reconcilliation. I told them in their faces that it was too late, because more harm has already been done to the family. In order for that to happen, Kennedy should reverse all the decisions he has taken alone and maybe we could take it from there,” said Lesley.
Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019. He currently writes on a freelance basis, covering human rights issues, court news and entertainment.
Search for a story:
ADVERTISEMENT
The economic conditions in Zimbabwe forced Tanaka Moyo (40) to legally seek greener pastures in Musina. He opted for a unique business plan, selling the wild jujube fruit to make a living. The fruit, called masau in Shona, is better known as mazwilu in Tshivenda.
As the unemployment rate in South Africa continued to rise, a group of women from Makonde village decided to start a community-based project to create job opportunities for themselves. However, it is very difficult to continue with the project without support from the government or the private sector.
At the age of 104, William Masindi Sadiki still has many stories to tell. Some of these are about his experiences during World War II, when he was part of the North Africa campaign. He is one of the few black soldiers from that era still alive, and he proudly pins his war medals on his chest on formal occasions.
The Rivoni School for the Blind in in Njakanjaka village in the Vhembe District has 167 learners from Grade R to Grade 12. The school was started in 2016 by the Rivoni Society for the Blind, founded in June 1975 at Elim Hospital by late Swiss doctor Erwin Sutter. The society later transferred responsibility for the school to the Department of Education.