By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Pretoria High Court has set aside the decision by President Cyril Ramaphosa to recognise King Misuzulu KaZwelithini as Isilo of the Zulu nation.
King Misuzulu ascended to the throne of the Zulu nation last year after the death of his parents, King Goodwill Zwelithini, and his mother, Queen Regent Mantfombi, who died months apart in 2021.
King Zwelithini died in March, while the Queen Regent Mantfombi died in May.
In October, King Misuzulu’s brother, Prince Simakade Zulu, approached the Pretoria High Court, seeking the court to declare Ramaphosa’s decision to isue certificate of recognition to King Misuzulu irrational and asking it to set aside the decision.
Ramaphosa told the court that his decision was rational in issuing the certificate to King Misuzulu, thus paving the way for his October 2022 coronation.
He also told the court he had been guided by a February 2022 ruling in the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Pietermaritzburg, where Judge Isaac Madondo dismissed an application by Prince Mbonisi Zulu who wanted King Misuzulu’s coronation to be stopped on the basis that King Misuzulu was wrongly nominated and there is a pending dispute that should first be resolved.
Judge Norman Davis said the decision to issue King Misuzulu with a certificate of recognition was unlawful and invalid and was set aside.
Judge Davis in his findings said his judgment was not about who should be the king of the Zulu nation but rather to determine if King Misuzulu was appointed as king in terms of the Zulu custom and whether Ramaphosa had correctly recognised the present king in terms of the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Act.
Davis found that Ramaphosa had not followed due process in recognising Misuzulu as the Zulu King.
The court also found that despite being aware of the disputes in the royal house on whether the meeting in which Misuzulu was identified as the new king of the Zulu nation complied with the prescripts of Zulu custom and the Leadership Act, Ramaphosa failed to consider objections raised by certain members of the royal house.
“Objections had been raised at that meeting against the manner in which the late Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi had conducted that meeting and how, for example, Prince Thokozani had been silenced and removed from the meeting,” the judgment reads.
“The president denied that he received this document due to an error in his email address noted thereon but acknowledged having received Princess Thembi’s later letter, dated 3 June 2021.”
In the letter, Princess Thembi contended that a meeting on 7 May 2021 did not amount to a meeting of the Zulu royal family and a meeting on 14 May was called under false pretences and that its agenda didn’t indicate that it was called for purposes of identifying a successor to the throne.
“The president, therefore, erred in law in not having followed peremptive provisions of the Leadership Act. This renders his recognition decision susceptible to review,” Davis found.
Judge Davis added: “The matter of the recognition of the Isilo of the AmaZulu is remitted to the first respondent (Ramaphosa), who is directed to act in terms of Sections 8(4) and 8(5) of the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Act 3 of 2019 and to appoint an investigative committee as contemplated in that Act to conduct an investigation and to provide a report in respect of allegations that the identification of the second respondent (Misuzulu) was not done in terms of customary laws and customs.”
Judge Davis has ordered Ramaphosa to appoint an investigative committee that will probe Prince Simakade’s allegations that the nomination process was not done in terms of customary laws and principles.
The first respondent (Misizulu) was ordered to pay the costs of the applicant (the party of his half-brother Simakade), “including the costs of two counsel, where employed.”
In respect of applications for condonation for late filing of papers or to strike out allegations in affidavits, each party is ordered to pay its own costs.”