Traditional leaders vote for local house representatives

TRADITIONAL leaders across the Eastern Cape province yesterday elected 77 members to the newly established local houses of traditional leaders (LHTL).

The LHTL’s areas are aligned with municipalities at all levels of local government.

The LHTL consists of kings or queens or their representatives, 60% of senior traditional leaders (chiefs) and 40% of headmen or headwomen.

Electoral colleges were held in Buffalo City Metro’s Robbie De Lange hall; in Amathole at the Msobomvu community hall in Butterworth; in Chris Hani at the Hobi Kula indoor sports centre in Komani; in the Joe Gqabi council chambers in Barkly East; the O R Tambo municipal hall in Southernwood, Mthatha; and in Alfred Nzo at the Alfred Nzo conference centre in EmaXesibeni, formerly Mount Ayliff.

Of the 77 traditional leaders, 10 are from Alfred Nzo, seven from BCM, 12 from Chris Hani and eight from Joe Gqabi, while Amathole and O R Tambo districts each have 20 members.

Sarah Baartman and Nelson Mandela Metro have no traditional leaders and will have no LHTL.

Cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) MEC Fikile Xasa said that candidates who did not appear in the voters’ roll were notified in writing that they did not qualify.

Swearing in of the LHTL members is scheduled for tomorrow and will be officiated by district magistrates.

The process will then be followed by the nomination of 38 members to the Eastern Cape Provincial House of Traditional Leaders (ECHTL), who will be inaugurated on September 26 in Bhisho.

The ECHTL will then nominate three members to represent the province in the National House of Traditional Leaders in Cape Town.

The elections of new members to the ECHTL came after the end of term of office of chairman Chief Ngangomhlaba Matanzima and his deputy, Prince Zolile Burns-Ncamashe who led the institution for three terms spanning 15 years. They are not eligible to be elected to those positions again.

The elections are surrounded by hype, and have unleashed ambitions to hold chairmanships or to be on the executives of the ECHTL or LHTL.

Headmen and women who had eyed these posts were dealt a big blow, however, when the Eastern Cape Traditional Leadership and Governance Act No 1 of 2017 was passed, preventing them being voted in as members of either the ECHTL or the national House of Traditional Leaders.

The same regulations also prevent headmen and headwomen from chairing the LHTL.

“But the regulation barring headmen or women from being chairpersons of local houses has been relaxed, meaning that they can ascend to the chairmanship of local houses.

“But they cannot be voted to the provincial house. Also, senior traditional leaders [chiefs] who have people acting on their behalf cannot be voted to any of the houses, be they local, provincial or national,’’ said Cogta spokesman Mamnkeli Ngam.