King Toni’s walk becomes a royal affair

The annual King Toni Mphephu Ramabulana Fun Walk and Musangwe was a royal affair this year with two African kings joining the Vhavenda king and thousands of his subjects for the event.

The walk, which started at the Christian Miracle Church at Tshisele and ended at the Nandoni Royal Gardens, was the brainchild of Mphephu Ramabulana himself in partnership with Phalaphala FM and the Nandoni Royal Gardens.

It is a buildup to the widely popular Phalaphala FM Royal Heritage Festival, which has become one of the best crowd pullers in the region.

King Fabrice Zombi from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Amapondo King Zanozuko Sigcau joined the Vhavenda king and walked the full 12 km to the royal gardens at Nandoni, where they also watched a musangwe tournament. Adressing the event, Mphephu Ramabulana said the event was more than a walk and watching musangwe, but a promotion of unity among the Vhavenda nation and promoting Vhavenda culture. “We believe this is an opportune time for us to be together and spend the day with our people, and it also helps us to keep fit.”

He said the occasion was also meant to showcase what the Venda culture entailed. “We have people from all over the world. This is the time we show what we are made of.”

King Fabrice Zombi said he was no foreigner in Venda as there were many Vhavenda in the DRC. “We are one people and one blood and we take pride in celebrating with you your culture during this special month. I will always support King Toni Mphephu’s initiatives as they are for the good of the people,” he said.

Date:23 September 2015

By: Elmon Tshikhudo

Elmon Tshikhudo started off as a photographer. He developed an interest in writing and started submitting articles to local as well as national publications. He became part of the Limpopo Mirror family in 2005 and was a permanent part of the news team until 2019.

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