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The High Court confirmed the appointment of Prince Vele Kutama as chief of the Kutama people.

If you are a Chief ... “Don’t marry for love”

 

If you are of royal blood, then don’t marry for love. If you do, that’s fairly much the end of the line for your royal lineage and your children will be citizens like everyone else.

This belief was strengthened by a recent ruling in the Thohoyandou High Court. Judge NF Kgomo ruled two weeks ago that children born from a wife other than the Dzekiso wife are not in line for succession.

This very interesting and somewhat controversial case started in May 2013 when papers were filed to oppose the inauguration of Prince Vele Kutama as the new chief of the Kutama area. The decision of the Kutama royal council to appoint Vele Kutama as chief was challenged by the son of the late Chief Peter Kutama, Mpho Andropov Kutama, and his uncle, Aifheli Andries Kutama. They argued that Mpho Kutama, as the only surviving son of the late chief, should have been next in line for the kingship.

In the court documents, a lot is being said about the customs of the Vhavenda and how a new successor is appointed by the royal family. Khosi Fhumulani Peter Kutama ruled as chief from 1989 until his death in August 2011. He was the grandson of the famous Venda king, Makhado Tshilwavhusiku Ramabulana. Unlike his predecessors, Chief Kutama did not marry a “Dzekiso” wife. As judge Kgomo explained in his ruling: “A Dzekiso wife is always procured from a pre-set family, i.e. the Royal Council or Family, in consultation with the Khadzi or Makhadzi in charge during the tenancy of the ruler in question, know before a ruler ascends the throne where such a ruler’s Dzekiso wife must be sourced from.”

Khosi Fhumulani Peter Kutama refused to marry a Dzekiso wife and instead married someone from a different lineage, namely Martha Kutama. They had two sons, Tshiungulela Ustinov Kutama, who died in March 2010, and Mpho Andropov Kutama.

Following the death of Chief Kutama, a panel of five Makhadzi (elders of the family) met to decide who the next Senior Khosi of the Kutama people would be. The name of Prince Vele Kutama as new successor was announced during a meeting of the Kutama Royal Family on 26 December 2011. The incumbent is the younger brother of the late chief and, according to the court papers, born from one of the Dzekiso wives.

Mpho Kutama and his uncle, Aifheli Kutama, argued in court that they were only later informed of the decision of the royal family, but judge Kgomo did not accept this version. He criticised them for not speaking up at the meeting and voicing their objections and he was convinced that they were present when such a decision was taken.

In the court papers, Mpho and his uncle also tried to make a case that Prince Vele Kutama is not an ideal candidate for the position, because he was born after the death of his “father”, Tshiungulela Nzobi Johannes Kutama. There was some deliberation in court on the practice of ukungena (where the widow becomes the wife of her brother-in-law). It was argued that the practice was fake and did not comply with recognised customary requirements.

Judge Kgomo described the arguments as mere speculation and dismissed them. “No substantiating facts were tendered to bolster them. As such they will remain that: speculation,” he said. The judge ruled that the first respondent in the case, Vele Kutama, was the correct choice, because “He is the most senior of the living Dzekiso sons of a recognised Chief.”

The two applicants’ plea that the late Chief Kutama’s wife, Martha, was accepted as the Dzekiso wife by the family during his 20-year reign, was also not accepted. “Should there have been a need (for a Dzekiso wife), the Royal Family should have proceeded to look for a Dzekiso wife, even without the co-operation or consent of the ruling traditional leader,” Andries Kutama argues in the court papers.

“A Dzekiso wife does not come from (just) any family,” stated judge Kgomo. “A specific new incumbent knows or ought to know or would be told where his Dzekiso wife would come from, i.e. from which specified family or homestead. He has no discretion over such a matter. He need not even love that Dzekiso wife. His (duty) is to do the necessary to ensure that the line of succession is assured within that lineage of chiefs.”

The two applicants’ request that the decision to appoint Vele Kutama as new chief be reviewed and set aside, was dismissed with costs.

The spokesperson for the Kutama Royal Family, Vhamusanda Vho-Ntanganedzeni Progress Kutama, welcomed the decision of the court and said it favoured both parties because the court could not appoint a chief. “The appointment of the chief is the responsibility of the royal family,” he said. According to him, the chieftaincy (Vhuhosi) is the property of the family and the chief is the "manager" of that property. He appealed to all parties to work together, so that the family can rule as a unit.

Andries Kutama said that they needed to decide within the next few days whether they would take the case on review. He believed that they might have enough grounds to file for an appeal.

 

 

Mpho Andropov Kutama, only living son of the late Chief Peter Kutama, lost his case in the High Court.

 

Date:27 March 2015

By: Anton van Zyl

Anton van Zyl has been with the Zoutpansberger and Limpopo Mirror since 1990. He graduated from the Rand Afrikaans University (now University of Johannesburg) and obtained a BA Communications degree. He is a founder member of the Association of Independent Publishers.

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