AmaMfengu leaders vow not to bow to AmaXhosa King

A WAR of words has erupted between the AmaXhosa and AmaMfengu over the sovereignty of land and traditional councils administered by the AmaMfengu within the AmaXhosa Kingdom in the Willowvale district.

AmaMfengu traditional leaders have vowed they will not bow to AmaXhosa King Mpendulo Zwelonke Sigcawu’s directive to remove their senior traditional leaders (chiefs) as heads of traditional councils and replace them with senior traditional leaders from Sigcawu’s AmaTshawe royal clan.

They alleged that Sigcawu made the directive because the area has traditionally been led by members of the AmaTshawe royal clan.

However, AmaMfengu traditional leaders argued that they had previously been given permission by AmaXhosa kings to rule over their own affairs when they moved to the Willowvale area in the late 1800s.

They claim that Sigcawu and his royal council are on a campaign to replace all AmaMfengu heads of traditional councils in Willowvale, however this would not apply to AmaMfengu traditional leaders in the Fingoland district, which encompasses Butterworth, Tsomo and Ngqamakhwe.

The AmaMfengu are independent in these areas and are not ruled by Sigcawu.

It is not yet clear how many traditional councils in Willowvale headed by AmaMfengu traditional leaders could be affected, but Chief Manduleli Bikitsha of the Zizi clan in Fort Malan, who is also a practising doctor in the Western Cape, believes his position as head of the Ntshatshongo Traditional Council is under threat.

About 30 AmaMfengu traditional leaders formed a collective to craft a way forward.

A meeting was subsequently held at Dutywa, where angry AmaMfengu leaders took a resolution to write a letter to Premier Phumulo Masualle, cooperative governance and traditional affairs MEC Fikile Xasa and King Sigcawu.

“If we do not have joy from the premier and the king himself we will have no choice but to approach court to bar the king from interfering with us,” said Bikitsha.

AmaXhosa kingdom royal spokesman Chief Xhanti Sigcawu – who is also the king’s uncle – said they could not comment on the matter.

“We have heard from the media that they will write to the premier and the king about the matter and we will take it from there,” said Sigcawu. — lulamilef have