Prince Mbonisi Zulu has denied his involvement in the Ingonyama Trust problems. Picture: Motshwari Mofokeng / Independent Newspapers
King Misuzulu’s uncle, Prince Mbonisi Zulu, says he fears for his life after the King publicly named him an enemy number one of Ingonyama Trust.
Addressing an imbizo (mass gathering) at the newly built Emashobeni Royal Palace in Pongola, KwaZulu-Natal, on Friday, the king told more than 1 000 subjects, including amakhosi (traditional leaders) and warriors (amabutho), that Prince Zulu was behind the problems facing Ingonyama Trust.
The king told the gathering that the board was on record saying it was not working for him after meeting with Prince Zulu. The king’s address came after a board member, Dr Thandiwe Dlamini, had ‘spilled the beans’ about how the board undermined the king and made disparaging remarks about him during several meetings she attended.
She further stated that at those meetings, the king was referred to as a crook who wanted to steal the Trust’s funds.
The king and the board are at loggerheads over control of the board after he dissolved it, only to be reinstated by the Land Reform and Rural Development Minister Mzwanele Nyhontso, who told the king that it was him (minister) not the king who had powers to sack the board.
Speaking to the Independent Media on Saturday morning, Prince Zulu said he was shocked by the king’s utterances which he said had put his life in danger.
He accused the king of deliberately pitting him against the Zulu nation. He denied that he was behind the destruction of the Trust, saying he wondered how he could wield so much influence while he was not even a member of the board.
“I now fear for my life. It is clear the intention was to incite the people to attack me. When you tell the public that someone is a bad person, clearly you want that person to be treated as an enemy and be attacked; so I will consult with my lawyers who will advise what steps I should take,” said Prince Zulu.
Zulu, who is a half-brother to the late King Zwelithini, was one of the princes who opposed King Misuzulu from ascending to the throne and even went to court to challenge the recognition and issuing of the kingship certificate to him.
The matter is still in court after President Cyril Ramaphosa appealed against the Pretoria High Court decision which set aside the king’s recognition, citing the procedural flaws.
Prince Zulu also filed papers in Pietermaritzburg High Court asking to bar King Misuzulu from presiding over the Ingonyama Trust until the case against his appointment as the king was finalised, however, the court dismissed his application.
willem.phungula@inl.co.za