Venda senior traditional leaders threaten to withdraw from Houses

Several senior Vhavenda traditional leaders have announced that they are considering withdrawing from the national and provincial Houses of Traditional Leaders. This follows a report filed in the Limpopo High Court wherein these Houses, among others, proclaim that Toni Mphephu Ramabulana is not eligible to be king of the Vhavenda.

The reports of the Limpopo House of Traditional Leaders (LHTL) and the National House of Traditional Leaders (NHTL) were filed two weeks ago. The two Houses were instructed to provide input to the Limpopo High Court in the case between Toni Mphephu-Ramabulana and his niece, Masindi.

The SCA instructed the LHTL and the NHTL to provide clarity on three issues. The first was whether measures had been put in place to promote the principle of primogeniture in traditional communities. The second issue was whether a child born before his or her parent became king or queen could be recognised as a successor. The last issue that the SCA regarded as crucial to the case was whether a Ndumi qualified as a successor to a position of traditional leadership.

The finding of the two Houses, namely that a Ndumi cannot be king, caused some concern. “His (Toni’s) appointment as Ndumi automatically disqualifies him from succeeding in a position of traditional leadership,” the report reads.

On Monday, a press conference was scheduled at the Mphephu Royal Kraal during which several of the senior Vhavenda traditional leaders expressed their dissatisfaction with the report filed. They claimed that no consultation had taken place prior to the report’s being compiled.

“We as the Venda senior traditional leaders are not happy with the decisions taken by the council members when they compiled their report,” said Thovhele Vho-Nthumeni Masia. He said that the intention of the senior traditional leaders was never to start entertaining issues that were before a court, but they were now forced to release a statement. “Our desire is to ensure that citizens are not misinformed by people with interest in issues surrounding the kingship,” he said.

Masia made it clear that they have trust in the judiciary system, and they are confident that, when the issues at hand serve before the court, the matter will be laid to rest.

“We are, however, disturbed by the fact that the work assigned to the provincial and national Houses had been copied to the media, which resulted in an aggressive misinformation campaign, which gave the impression that the court has pronounced on the matter. Secondly, we are disturbed that the assignment given to the houses was poorly executed and the process followed raises more questions than answers,” he said.

Masia said that the findings of the committees of the Houses, particularly the provincial one, had not been sanctioned. “Many among us are members of the House and have no knowledge of such a report. The report was compiled by three members who are not serving in the committee on disputes. There was no credible investigation as far as it relates to the Vhavenda tradition,” he said.

“Our view is that the Houses serve to preserve customs and traditions of various ethnic groups and the two Houses are moving in an opposite direction. The Vhavenda traditional leaders have been observing with disappointment endeavours to undermine Venda traditions and customs in many areas where there are disputes,” said Masia.

He said that traditional leaders with no knowledge of Venda tradition had been deployed to adjudicate on matters they did not have competence in. “This, in our view, is a calculated effort to erode our customs and traditions,” he said.

Masia said that all Vhavenda traditional leaders had distanced themselves from the reports forwarded to the courts. “We are considering pulling out from all the Houses as they continue to be part of all efforts to undermine the Vhavenda culture,” he said.

The spokesperson for the Mphephu Ramabulana Royal House, Ntsieni Ramabulana, said that the family preferred to make no statements at this time. The family will make their own submission to the court when challenging the reports. “All we can say is that we have heard what they have said, and we respect their decision, because they took their decision independently. We are definitely going to make a submission regarding that report,” he said.

News - Date: 23 November 2019

Kaizer Nengovhela

Kaizer Nengovhela started writing stories for Limpopo Mirror in 2000. Prior to that he had a five year stint at Phala-Phala FM as sports presenter. In 2005 Kaizer received an award from the province's premier as Best Sports Presenter. The same year he was also nominated as Best Sports Reporter by the Makhado Municipality. Kaizer was awarded the Mathatha Tsedu award in 2014.

Email: [email protected]