Zuma’s behind a conspiracy against me

King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, centre-left, escorts Nelson Mandela's former wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela to her car, after visiting the Mediclinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria where Madiba is being treated. Picture: Ben Curtis / AP

King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, centre-left, escorts Nelson Mandela's former wife Winnie Madikizela-Mandela to her car, after visiting the Mediclinic Heart Hospital in Pretoria where Madiba is being treated. Picture: Ben Curtis / AP

Published Jul 12, 2013

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On Monday, ‘the elders’ of the AbaThembu nation told the media that controversial AbaThembu King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo had been relieved of his duties about nine months ago.

On Wednesday, the furious king handed over a memorandum to President Jacob Zuma’s office in Pretoria, in which ‘a general meeting of the AbaThembu nation’ said that the Presidency may have been involved in a coup plot and that Zuma may have been a co-conspirator.

Here is the full text of that memorandum:

  Petition to the State President of the Republic of South Africa, Mr JG Zuma, from the AbaThembu Royal Kingdom and His Majesty King Buyelekhaya Zwelibanzi Dalindyebo, after a decision of the general meeting of the AbaThembu nation on July 6:

The Honourable President of South Africa, Mr JG Zuma,

Mr President, we note with the greatest concern that the AbaThembu Royal Kingdom has previously written a lot of correspondence to your office concerning constitutional and infrastructural developmental issues.

Evidently, none of those letters managed to draw your attention for immediate consideration over the past years.

One of the matters in question is that, until today, there has been no feedback about:

l The jurisdiction of the Kingdom with regards to land, powers, functions and its general role, particularly the administration of traditional matters and jurisprudence.

l The introduction of Principal Chiefs who are deemed to be independent or have absolute autonomy, which is not in line with Nhlapo Commission Resolutions.

l The non-standardisation of processes, protocols and equitable budget allocations for South African Kingdoms, for example in KwaZulu-Natal, the Zulu Kingdom is the responsibility of the Premier’s office while in the Eastern Cape, the Kings are the responsibility of the MEC’s office.

l That the legitimacy of these so-called chiefs has been raised by the King to both the Eastern Cape government and to the President himself, in vain.

Notwithstanding the above, the Presidency, on the basis of perceived premeditated circumstances, chose to prioritise the so-called dethroning of the King by some disgruntled, faceless, so-called family members and agents provocateurs who claimed to have powers invested in them to make final decisions for the entire Kingdom.

We wish to register here that the AbaThembu nation has received correspondence from your office dated April 1 titled, “Matters of Interest Pertaining to Affairs of AbaThembu” with disappointment, shock and dismay.

The correspondence is littered with ambiguities, flaws and self-seeking, nefarious, sponsored hidden agendas that beg the question:

Where does the Presidency stand in these matters?

Has the Presidency stooped so low that it could be reduced to becoming a co-conspirator by disgruntled, illegitimate and faceless individuals?

Given the above, the AbaThembu nation wishes to respond thus:

l Supremacy of the constitution:

the AbaThembu nation and structure subscribe to the supremacy of the constitution of the Republic of South Africa.

Section 2 asserts: “This constitution is the supreme law of the Republic; law or conduct inconsistent with it is invalid, and the obligations imposed by it must be fulfilled.”

Section 12 of the constitution provides for the institution of Traditional Leadership.

Our understanding is that the AbaThembu Royal Kingdom is also part of this constitution that goes with the autonomy and independence granted to other kingdoms like the KwaZulu Kingdom.

Here we wish to pause and ask the President: would the President have dealt with this so-called dethroning of its King in the same way?

l Ambiguity and inconsistency of the submission (a release put out to the media on Monday signed by “the Elders from the Great House for the Kingdom of AbaThembu”, in which they announce that they withdrew the customary spear from Zwelibanzi, who they described as the “former King of AbaThembu”, about nine months ago).

The submission seems to be raising alarm about the conduct of the King and at the same time suggests relieving the King of his duties.

Our understanding is that we, as the Kingdom, subscribe to the principle of natural justice called audi alteram partem (hear both sides of the story).

The principle prescribes that the authenticity of those alleging be ascertained and verified.

It is disingenuous of the Presidency to entertain a document purported to be written by “concerned people” asking for the King to be relieved of his duties without conducting its own investigation.

The AbaThembu Royal Kingdom perceives this move by the Presidency as a coup plot and the Presidency as a co-conspirator.

Does the President distance himself from this perceived conduct and will he therefore refute this perception?

It is an open secret that one of the authors of the submission had submitted to one of the plotting meetings that “he is going to use his relationship with President Zuma, because Zuma wants the King out” before 2014 elections.

Is it therefore sheer coincidence that after that we receive this correspondence?

Equally, could the President provide us with a reason as to why he has not bothered to hear the side of the King on this matter?

l Interference and non-observance of protocol: we have no option but to view it as disingenuous and smacking of political opportunism that the Presidency does not hesitate to invoke the direct lines of communication which exist between its office and the Kingdom, come elections.

But when the Presidency is a co-conspirator, he prefers to write the Kingdom a “love letter” under the guise of matters pertaining to the affairs of the AbaThembu.

The Kingdom is very furious about this and we wish not to deal with faceless individuals.

Let those who have an issue with the Kingdom stand up and be counted, not hide behind disgruntled individuals.

Our understanding is that we regard this as interference of the worst order!

Our territorial integrity and sovereignty is not shaken by threats of removal or relief from duty as we are born into this, not voted into it.

We are not in the process of accumulating wealth or stealing from the poor before we are recalled by our parties.

* Top-down vs bottom-up approach: our forefathers, both immediate and distant, dedicated their lives to eliminating the scourge of tribalism imposed by the apartheid settlers.

In the trenches, we resisted divide and rule by mercenaries.

We find it strange and rather reactionary that under democracy, some Kingdoms that happen to be speaking the same language as the President of the Republic, are recipients of the best form of treatment from the Presidency.

This is a matter of grave concern to us.

* Conclusion: we understand that while you are the President of the country, you are also born into the royal family of the AmaNxamalala, and that qualifies you to have a background in how issues relating to traditional leadership are handled.

The manner in which you have handled our matter is very disappointing given your background as a man who is widely known to be a traditionalist.

Your constant refusal to pay a visit to Bumbane Royal Palace to address this matter is very concerning to the AbaThembu nation because you keep sending your ministers with no decision-making powers on the issues that the King raised.

We invite the President to avail himself at Bumbane Great Place personally on July 25 to respond to the communique transmitted to him by the disgruntled clique of AmaDlomo.

 

We wish to remind the Presidency the AbaThembu Kingdom is not only composed of AmaDlomo, but of various nations under its jurisdiction which equally have a say in the running of the affairs of the Kingdom.

* This petition was submitted by the AbaThembu nation out of the Bumbane Great Place in the King Sabata Dalindyebo Municipality in Eastern Cape

 

** The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Independent Newspapers

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