Book on history of Vhurivhuri people published

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In a newly published book that had taken nearly a decade to research and complete, Tshilidzi Nembvumoni expands on the history of the Vhurivhuri people and their chieftainship quest. Nembvumoni, a resident of Vhurivhuri, said the research for his book, “Divhazwakale ya Vhurivhuri”, took a long time to complete, mainly because of challenges in verifying information.

“It was quite exhilarating to experience the past and how it has influenced the present existence – the hardships of Black people under apartheid and all other struggles,” he said. “The present quest for land by mostly young people is something to marvel at, wonder about, and be shocked by at times because many of them care less about how to appropriately address the issue.”

In the book, Nembvumoni raises the controversial issue of chieftainship. He comes to the conclusion that all chieftaincies have been fiercely contested. He states in his book that, before the interference of the Western administration in chieftainships, no conclusive lineage to chieftaincy or kingship existed, but that those interested in becoming the ultimate leader had to first wage war, and the victor would become king.

“I feel that the Vhumbedzi tradition was sacrificed by the white administration, in that today it has become common knowledge that this chief or Vhamusanda will be followed by that prince (his son) and so on,” he said. “In the former days, the heir to the throne was kept a secret during his father’s reign. And chieftainship had to be contested, especially by those who could satisfy some of the requirements.

“It was not easy for me to write a book like this one. It’s not exactly the kind of book anyone expects from a pastor,” he said. “I wrote this book to impact the lives of people from all age groups in terms of figuring out the importance of decision making and the issue of self-encouragement when they are in the midst of challenges.”

By: Kaizer Nengovhela

Kaizer Nengovhela started writing stories for Limpopo Mirror in 2000. Prior to that he had a five year stint at Phala-Phala FM as sports presenter. In 2005 Kaizer received an award from the province's premier as Best Sports Presenter. The same year he was also nominated as Best Sports Reporter by the Makhado Municipality. Kaizer was awarded the Mathatha Tsedu award in 2014.