Chronicle Editor
Pathisa Nyathi
A CHRONICLE story on February 21, 2022, by Nqobile Tshili made some interesting reading. In the end, I felt prompted to beef up the story for the good of other young chiefs. The story titled “Dilemma of a youthful chief,” evoked interest that other chiefs in the same category may benefit from my comment.
The story was on incumbent Chief Nkalakatha Ndiweni whose chiefly domain is in the Nkayi District.
Some brief background on the chieftainship may be necessary. The chieftainship going by that name Nkalakatha is descended from Chief Mletshe Ndiweni who was appointed over Ujinga (Ojingeni community) in the pre-colonial period.
Ujinga Village constituted isiphika-fringing villages for the royal town at the time when King Mzilikazi’s royal capital was at Inyathi (Emhlangeni)
Son Nkomo, at the time Ujinga was where the Inyathi road branches from the Bulawayo-Harare road succeeded Mletshe. There is a small and somewhat insignificant store at the junction. Secondary acacia vegetation marks the geographical extent of Ujinga Village, which is just before one gets to the position of Ezinyangeni Village, after the fly-over bridge, and about the turn-off road to Shangani Mine.
Within the chief’s village of Ujinga there lived Queen Mahwe (written as Marwe in some old history books). She was one of King Lobengula’s queens. Mahwe was a daughter of Chief Mletshe and, as is well known, King Lobengula married several Ndiweni daughters.
After Chief Nkomo, the next chief was Nkalakatha and it was under his leadership that Ujinga community was evicted from the fertile soils and resettled by the colonial government in the Nkayi District, which was part of the Shangani Reserve, set aside for the resettlement of the defeated Ndebele people.
Seeing as there were many chieftaincies in the new reserve, the Ezinyangeni chieftainship was abolished and its people placed under Ujinga whose chief was Nkalakatha. Gilford Ndiweni came before the incumbent chief Zwelani, who was inaugurated in 2018 at the youthful age of 25 years.
In his interview, Chief Nkalakatha complained about the loss of social privileges that his age mates are enjoying. “Even your social life is stolen once you are appointed chief,” lamented the youthful chief.
The youthfulness of a chief within the Ndebele society is not something new. The succession rules made it so even before the colonial period. King Lobengula presided over his late father King Mzilikazi’s age-mates.
There were social and political measures that were instituted to deal with the apparent challenge. The new chief represented his father who over the years won the hearts and minds of his subjects.
The new chief knew well that the people were not his, but belonged to his father. Respect, loyalty and dignity followed him because he was the representative of his father where the law of primogeniture applied when it came to succession. The new king thus ruled over his “fathers.” This was not the case in Shona societies where succession was lateral.
Among the Ndebele succession was vertical and only under unique circumstances would it become lateral.
The manner of conducting trials made the chief acquire respect. There were men (women did not attend court sessions in pre-colonial Ndebele times) who constituted the jury or prosecution and tried cases while the chief listened attentively without interfering with the processes.
The matter was debated exhaustively to a point where judgement became obvious. Only then did the chief pronounce judgement that, by virtue of the prosecution details, was ipso facto judgement of the people through their representatives, the prosecution team.
One unwritten rule was that the chief spoke less even in his private life. Familiarity breeds contempt. The chief was not expected to pass the calabash (of beer) to some of his subjects. In current times, the community does not expect a self-respecting chief to go to the business centre and drink in the company of his subjects.
Quarrels may ensue and under the influence of alcohol, the chief may lose respect and dignity as he interacts with subjects in the context of an environment that erodes and damages his positive image, respect, dignity, deference and admiration.
Inauguration of a chief was followed immediately by initiation or induction. The elderly members of the family and community advised the new chief on the history and culture of the community that he was going to lead.
In particular, he had to be the custodian of the family traditions, know and literally sing the names of his ancestors who were chiefs ahead of him. He had to know the praises of the various chiefs in the lineage and those relating to the clan surname such as Ndiweni, Gumede or Fuyana.
He would have to know where their village was located at different times. I have lamented the fact that time is moving and sooner than later, we will not know where Imbizo, Ihlathi, Inqama etc. were located. All we shall know are the current positions, which is where the village resettled after evictions by the colonial authority.
What Chief Nkalakatha has to know is that certain social and political positions go together with social costs. This is the price for earning respect, reverence, dignity and respect. Even someone like myself is socially and culturally constrained.
There are certain behaviours that I cannot engage in because of my position and role in society-roles, which are socio-cultural and not political. All these were taught to the new chief before assuming the chiefly roles.
Chef Sikhobokhobo, also from Nkayi District succinctly put across the point: “They will still want to hang around with their peers, yet their roles will have changed. Even their language and dress code should change…..”
This was very precise and relevant advice. In the heyday of the Ndebele State, newly appointed queens were taken through their paces regarding their conduct in public and in the private social spheres. Even the way they laughed had to be regulated in line with their new political, social and cultural roles.
During the colonial period, the new chiefs were summoned to Domboshava where they were inducted into their new roles.
If this were done, Chief Nkalakatha would know that high positions in social, political, cultural and religious/spiritual spheres go together with loss of certain freedoms. The chiefs are no exception.
They just have to conduct themselves in a way that is commensurate with their lofty social and cultural roles. There is thus need for induction for the new chiefs to cater for cultural and traditional matters with a full understanding that chiefs occupied decentralised offices of the monarch.
That made their positions very political.
Within the context of the Ndebele people, they were the eyes and ears of the King. When their loyalty was in question, the king dismissed or killed them. Mbiko kaMadlenya Masuku is a case in point. In any case, the King had powers to appoint and disappoint as Professor Jonathan Moyo used to express it.
Of course, in addition to their roles they would require grooming in the relevant pieces of legislation that define their governance. The total package for their induction should thus be both traditional/cultural and embrace the relevant acts that apply in their areas of jurisdiction.
It is good to note that Chief Nkalakatha is doing a relevant degree with the Midlands State University (MSU). The degree relates to local governance and one hopes the degree content is sensitive to ethnic, traditional, cultural and historically unique circumstance so that the one size fits all syndrome is avoided.
There has to be some deliberate effort to fine tune the contents in order to achieve relevance and meaning in the diverse communities.
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