Siblings question brother’s paternity
MBABANE – “Lekhaya akuviwana.”
This was said by Maqhawe Shongwe, whose paternity is questioned by some of the late Mandlenkhosi Shongwe’s children, yesterday when they appeared before the Judicial Commission of Inquiry.
The commission, which is chaired by Judge Majahenkhaba Dlamini, is investigating allegations of misconduct among others in the Office of the Master of the High Court.
Other members of the commission are Judge President Sifiso Nsibande, Judge Mzwandile Fakudze, Judge Maxine Langwenya and Judge Lorraine Hlophe.
Mandlenkhosi died on May 30, 2016. He was married to Busisiwe Malindzisa in terms of Eswatini Law and Custom. They resided at Mandlenkhosi’s parental home at Ludzeludze in the Manzini Region. Assets of the estate are a block of 15 one-room rental flats, which he built on a field.
Estate
The estate has still not been wound up and one of the daughter’s of the deceased, Gugu, said when comparing the amounts they received compared to the number of years when the rentals were collected, it did not correspond. Gugu resides in the Republic of South Africa, but was present yesterday.
She also alleged that one of their siblings was not fathered by Mandlenkhosi.
Another of his daughters, Telukhetfo, who was co-executrix with Malindzisa, after the deceased’s brother, Sandile, resigned from being the executor, informed the commission that she did not see eye-to-eye with Malindzisa, who is wheelchair-bound.
Emotional
“I will not speak to them, because the one who brought me here is dead. I won’t talk to them,” said Malindzisa, who had become emotional.
Telukhetfo added: “My mother does not speak to them, she even said so.” Telukhetfo is Malindzisa’s stepdaughter, who had also observed that their issues could be dealt with at family level.
She acknowledged that she and her stepmother had their shortcomings. Telukhetfo said she would enquire from Malindzisa about the possibility of meeting as a family, because the latter did not speak to her aunts.
When the commission suggested that they should meet as a family to discuss their differences, the widow, Malindzisa, said she would not speak to her in–laws, because she would not be protected at the homestead and the person who brought her to the homestead was dead.
The former executor, Sandile, was requested by the commission to intervene and facilitate a meeting of the family, he accused his nieces of having some kind of attitude. He did not agree to facilitating the meeting lest accusations against him be made.
The sibling, who is accused of not being Mandlenkhosi’s son, stated that Sandile would not be able to facilitate the meeting.
“Asivani nje sodvwa lekhaya (the family is divided). Akuviwana and it is the same with our aunts,” he said.
Mandlenkhosi’s estate was reported to the master by his father, Sibusiso Shongwe.
Apart from the rental flats, his wife said she was not aware if he had money in the bank and if he did, how much it was. She said she was already in a wheelchair.
Gugu said her father had three children and the paternity of the fourth was questionable.
Divided
She informed the commission that, since the family was allegedly divided, her aunt, Lindiwe, suggested that they should approach the Master’s Office in Manzini.
An assistant master she did not identify, according to Gugu, asked for the widow and told them that she would speak only to the children of the deceased.
Gugu said Sandile had assumed his duties as the executor. She stated that she believed that the rental collections were deposited to the Master’s Office, but she was unsure.
According to Gugu, in 2021 or 2022, there was a distribution of the rentals and they each received about E7 000. Malindzisa said she was not aware how much she received, because the money was deposited into the bank. She alleged that the initial executor, Sandile, did not update the beneficiaries on the progress of his work. She said it had been six years since Mandlenkhosi died and they had not met.
The former executor, who is her uncle (babe lomncane), according to Gugu, allegedly called and informed her that he was relinquishing his position as the executor. She said she even requested him not to.
“In the house a cable was stolen. Telukhetfo got a quotation form from EEC and went to the Master’s Office to ask for money. The master told her that the executor was not longer continuing with his duties and had resigned.
“We were surprised. The master asked if he did a handover. He had not. The master called a meeting and we found out how much was in the bank and I was not satisfied, because it had been three years since we shared any money.
Complain
“The executor did not call meetings. I went to complain to the master. We were not getting the money per month. We believed it was deposited in the bank. The master said the file should be closed. I said no, because something was not right. I said the file would be closed once the issue of the money had been solved,” Gugu told the commission.
She also stated that they discovered that some cheques were issued to in favour of Bongekile Sibandze. Sibandze and Telukhotfo shared a mother. However, she (Sibandze) had her own father.
Raised
According to the siblings, when Mandlenkhosi fetched Telukhetfo, who was about three years old, from where her mother was residing, he did not leave Sibandze behind and raised her as his child as well. Sibandze is said to have leant later in her life that she was not Mandlenkhosi’s biological daughter.
Both Telukhetfo and Sibandze are said to have not known their mother.
“We wondered how cheques (from the estate) were issued in Bongekile’s favour, because only beneficiaries (by blood) should benefit,” Gugu said.
The assistant master, she said, told them that the money was provisionally paid to Sibandze and it would be claimed from the Guardian Fund.