King Misuzula and his amabutho
* He was scheduled to bring a 300-strong delegation along with him but provincial government asked him to reduce entourage
* It would be embarrassing to go with a small number of amabutho and therefore he cancelled
* But he has sent some princes to represent him — the king’s close aide, Prince Simphiwe Zulu, told the Daily News
Maravi Express
Apparently angered by the restructuring of his delegation team which included 300 amabutho, the Zulu regiments (military units/warriors), South Africa’s Zulu nation king Misuzulu Sinqobile kaZwelethini, has cancelled his trip to Malawi he was scheduled to attend the celebration of Umthetho Cultural Festival.
Advertisement
The highest ranking Ngoni royal was expected to grace this the Umthetho Cultural Festival at Hora Mountain in Mzimba District, which is currently underway, but according to South Africa’s media reports, King Misuzulu was scheduled to bring a 300-strong delegation along with him.
During Ngoni wars in the past, the amabutho used to be the first line of defence to protect the land, women and children from invaders but King Misuzulu feels “it would be embarrassing to go with a small number of amabutho and therefore he cancelled, but he has sent some princes to represent him”, the king’s close aide, Prince Simphiwe Zulu, told the Daily News.
The report further said the king, together with his delegation was expected to leave on Tuesday or Wednesday after attending the State of the Provincial Address by premier Thami Ntuli.
Advertisement
And answering questions from the media after delivering his maiden State of the Provincial Address, Thami Ntuli said his office was working together with co-operative governance & traditional affairs to support the trip but approved a restructured delegation.
And when contacted Prince Simphiwe Zulu told the Daily News that the funding was the main reason for cancellation of the trip, saying instead the king has sent a delegation of princes to represent him in the ceremony.
The report on iol.co.za indicated that last week, the king’s delegation was to cost the provincial budget R3.6 million, “which the government was apparently not happy about, and it had reportedly asked the king to reduce the number of regiments”.
Advertisement
Most of the king’s delegation was supposed to travel by road to Malawi to honour the invitation by Malawi’s King M’mbelwa V of Ngoni kingdom in celebrating his 10th anniversary on the throne.
It was also reported that the king had already sent a delegation led by his sister, Princess Ntando, to Malawi to do logistical preparations ahead of his visit.
King M’mbelwa also attended and spoke during King Misuzulu’s kraal entering ceremony in 2022 and according to iol.co.za, M’mbelwa lamented in his speech of the borders separating the Malawi and Zulu kingdoms, saying Malawians were also Zulus.
The Umthetho Festival 2024 is expected to be graced by President Lazarus Chakwera on its climax on Saturday, August 3 — to be celebrated under the theme; ‘Uniting against Climate Change under the Decade of His Majesty M’mbelwa V’.
In an interview on Monday ahead of the festival, which starts today, and reaches its climax on Saturday, MZIHA general secretary, Kingsley Jere told Malawi News Agency (MANA) that the event is to celebrate diversity.
Apart from Zulu people, Ngonis from Zambia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe are also expected to attend the event and Jere also called upon business people to use the festival to sell their merchandise, saying: “Umtheto Festival is a big platform for business as it brings many people to one place — hence we call upon business people to trade their wares during the festival.
Advertisement
“There will be multitudes of people and any businessman should maximise on the people to make extra bucks,” he said.
The festival, led by Inkosi ya Makhosi Mmbelwa V, will feature traditional Ingoma dances, meat feasts and beer celebrations.
The South African media indicates that the cancellation is also expected to come as a relief to organisers, Mzimba Heritage Association (MZIHA), which reportedly increased the ceremony budget from K75 million (about R787,000) to K156 million, due to the high number of people who would accompany the Zulu king.
However, the private and public corporate has assisted the event financially that include Big boost towards the 2024 Umthetho Cultural Festival from the following corporate world FDH Bank; Crecks Hardware; Malawi Gaming and Lotteries Authority (MAGLA); Nyasa Manufacturing Company (NMC); Malawi Communications Regulatory Authority (MACRA); TNM; NBS Bank; MYO; Chibuku products; SEEDCO, among others.—Reporting from South Africa by Willem Phungula, iol.co.za; editing by Maravi Express
