Late King Zwelithini’s brothers on the attack amid succession row

Members of the Zulu royal family have warned against “outsiders” who want to use their proximity to the royal house to advance their own agendas.

Brothers of the late King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu — Prince Mbonisi kaBhekuzulu, Prince Mathuba KaBhekuzulu and Prince Vulindlela kaBhekuzulu — addressed the media in Umhlanga in KwaZulu-Natal on Thursday.

Prince Vulindlela said they wanted to respond to comments by Indunas (tribal councillors) who are not known to them about infighting in the royal family.

“The important thing is to let the nation know about the people calling themselves of the royal house, who go around telling the media there is a war brewing [in the royal house]. There is a man who wrote in a local newspaper last week to say he is warning us against starting a war,” he said.

“This man said we are hunting a dangerous animal, I don’t know if by that he’s referring to the late king’s son [Misuzulu kaZwelithini], who they are now calling king. That is advocating for war in itself. It means we are being threatened. He’s saying we should be careful.”

The prince said those people are meddling in their family affairs.

“Is it not the responsibility of a father to call a child and correct them when they are making mistakes?”

The prince asked for the intervention of government, in all its spheres, amid the alleged threats to their lives.

“We don’t think we are safe when we get threats that we are provoking a snake in its hole. We don’t know what they mean because these people know us but we don’t [know them].

In March, President Cyril Ramaphosa formally recognised Prince Misuzulu as the Zulu king. Earlier in July Prince Mbonisi was among members of the family who filed a fresh court application seeking to declare the coronation unlawful.

The Zulu royal household was, however, forging ahead with plans for the coronation, expected on August 13.

Prince Mbonisi reiterated that anyone who wanted to know about the plans of the royal house should contact them as the senior royal family, not outsiders.

“Since we haven’t recognised a king as a family, we are planning to reveal who can lead this great nation. I know this may hurt some but the truth is the family selects a prince within themselves to lead,” he said.

Prince Vulindlela set his sights on the traditional prime minister Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi. He accused the IFP founder and president emeritus of using his proximity to the royal house for his political agenda.

“Others are politicians who use the fact that their party is supported predominantly by Zulu people and act as if that is endorsed by the royal house,” he said.

“We all know who Buthelezi is. He is disturbing us at the royal house because the king [the late king Zwelithini] always disassociated the kingdom from politics. We are a family of the nation. A person who enters that house because he is looking for something to gain is a politician.”

Prince Mathuba said the history of the Zulu nation must not be allowed to be told in a way that makes it seem as if the Buthelezi clan had been the only ones who fought for the Zulu kingdom, ignoring the efforts of the great houses.

He questioned why amakhosi (chiefs) from those houses were allowing the role of their forefathers to be erased in Zulu history.

“The kids who are born today know of two houses: Zulu and Buthelezi. That is not the case. There were warriors like Gcwabe kaZihlandlo, Mzilikazi kaMashobane and others who played a huge role,” he said.

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