adminMakaziwe Mandela (60), is believed to be in line to assume the title after Mandla, the anti-apartheid hero’s grandson and traditional heir, conceded he had “overplayed” his hand in a dispute involving the exhumation of Mandela’s three dead children.
The development came following a family summit called by Makaziwe last week in Qunu, the village where Mandela grew up and to which he returned in retirement, as her father remained in a critical condition.
Mandela’s eldest granddaughter, Ndileka, last week confirmed the move.
“My aunt Maki is the senior member,” she said.
“She is the elder in the family. It’s our family and it has always been based on collective decisions.”
Questions over the succession emerged as relatives discussed a painful question about whether to lay Mandela to rest close to his deceased children, a debate that raised the issue of Mandla’s decision two years ago to exhume their bodies.
Mandela has three deceased children: Thembekile, killed in a car accident in 1969; Makgatho, who died of an Aids-related illness in 2005; and a girl also called Makaziwe who died as an infant in 1948. Mandla moved their remains from Qunu to the hamlet of Mvezo, 15 miles away, apparently without consulting the family. Mvezo is where Mandela was born and where Mandla is chief.
At the time it was suspected that Mandla, also an African National Congress MP, was paving the way for Mandela himself to be buried in Mvezo, where Mandla has begun constructing a museum and other facilities. But last week, this appeared to be a battle he had lost.
The gathering of Mandela elders and relatives decided that all three children should be re-exhumed and returned to Qunu so that they will lie close to their father when he is eventually buried there. The decision was backed by a court ruling.
Mandla was contrite, according to Bantu Holomisa, a close friend of Mandela who was at the meeting.
“There was no argument because Mandla said, ‘I made a mistake.’ He apologised and said he had overplayed it. The elders said, ‘Son, you should consult us’, but they didn’t want a lot of argument. We didn’t want him to feel he was facing a tribunal.”
Mandela has three living children, all daughters, as well as 17 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren.
There have long been whispers of a split pitting the descendants of his first wife, Evelyn, against those of his second, Winnie. The potential conflicts have an added dimension in the shape of his third wife, Graça Machel. There are also widespread cultural assumptions around the supremacy of the male line. But Holomisa suggested that age trumps all.
“Makaziwe is the eldest daughter of Madiba,” he said, referring to Mandela by his clan name.
“Then you have his other daughters Zenani and Zindzi. I think they are more senior than Mandla. He is a chief in a certain area, but the daughters are calling the shots. Madiba has taught them to have a meeting and decide things collectively.”
Further evidence that Makaziwe is asserting her authority came in a recent legal action that she and Zenani took to remove Mandela’s long-time friend and lawyer, George Bizos, from the boards of two investment funds. Mandla opposed the suit, while Bizos and his allies claim it is part of a plan to assert control of Mandela’s assets.
Holomisa has played down suggestions that the house of Mandela is at war with itself. Mandla has also denied reports of a rift. His spokesman, Freddy Pilusa, said: “According to Mandla, there’s no issue. If anyone with authority wants to repatriate (the bodies) they can do so.”
Meanwhile, the Ngubengcuku royal houses would intervene in Mandela’s family dispute involving the reburial of some of Mandela relatives, the royal house said on Sunday. Royal family chairperson Thanduxolo Mtirara said in a statement that AbaThembu royal house would hold a meeting with other royal houses on July 8 at the Qunu royal residence to try and resolve the matter.
Mtirara said they were deeply concerned following reports that the Mandelas had turned to the courts over the matter.
“The royal family for the kingdom of AbaThembu . . . sees it as its responsibility to intervene in the current family dispute and invite other royal houses so as to bring the necessary harmony especially during this challenging period when the patriarch of the family is ill in hospital,” said Mtirara.
“This matter has to be brought to an end.”
Mandela remains in a critical but stable condition at the Medi-Clinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria. He has been in hospital since June 8 and is being treated for a recurring lung infection.
In a statement on Sunday, Mandla Mandela said the way the matter was being handled was contrary to their customs. He expressed disappointment that his family members had chosen to turn to the courts to resolve intricate family matters.
“. . . (It is) a deep disappointment to my grandfather and his ancestors,” he said.
On Friday, the Mthatha Magistrate’s Court heard an urgent application by 16 people against Mandla Mandela.
The application was reportedly to have the remains of some of the former president’s relatives moved from Mvezo to Qunu, and was also made against Eastern Cape Premier Noxolo Kiviet and Health MEC Sicelo Gqobana.
City Press reported that Judge Lusindiso Pakade issued an interim order on Friday afternoon interdicting Mandla Mandela from preventing the reburial and from interfering with the process, which was expected to be concluded in the next few days.
Mandla Mandela was also ordered to pay the legal costs of the hearing.
His lawyer, advocate Matthew Mpahlwa, confirmed to the newspaper that he had decided to oppose the matter. A motion was expected to be filed yesterday on the basis that the remains were in the right place in Mvezo, where Mandela was born.
“It is important at all times that we as a family avoid actions and decisions that will infringe on the dignity of my grandfather,” he said.
“As the nation and the world continues to send their support and prayers, the family’s efforts must be geared towards caring for him and to avoid putting his name in disrepute.” — guardian.co.uk/Sapa.
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