By LULAMILE FENI
Eastern Cape traditional leaders believe it is high time that all kings should have royal representatives or parliamentary councillors in the provincial legislature, as is the case in Kwazulu-Natal.
This view was raised during a farewell function hosted by the OR Tambo district’s House of Traditional & Khoi-san Leaders for their outgoing member, Nkosi Mwelo Nkonyana, who is now an ANC MP in the National Council of Provinces.
OR Tambo HT&KSL chair Nkosi Ntandoyesizwe Ndamase said: “In Kwazulu-natal, in their law that established the legislature, there is a parliamentary councillor for the king.
“That is the approach that we must embrace as traditional leaders,” Ndamase said.
He raised concerns about traditional leaders being on political party lists and competing with their subjects for positions in legislatures and parliament.
“What does it mean to the integrity of a traditional leader and the institution of traditional leadership if a traditional leader contests a position against his or her subject and subsequently is defeated by that subject?
“Is it not lowering the dignity and integrity of traditional leaders?
“Instead, we could have a representative for a king and participate in the making of laws, as it is happening in Kwazulu-natal Legislature,” he said.
Speaking about Nonkonyana, Ndamase said as a “veteran traditional leader, a trusted and tested political leader, and a seasoned high court advocate with 10 years of experience as an MP” he would make a meaningful contribution to the NCOP.
He said they wish he had been sent to the national traditional affairs ministry to contribute to making laws that favoured traditional leadership.
Ndamase and Nonkonya said two of the laws that undermining traditional leadership in post-1994 SA were the Spatial Planning & Land Use Management Act of 2013 (Spluma) and the Traditional and Khoi-san Leadership Act, 3 of 2019 (TKLA).
“Land must be restored to traditional councils. Mischievously, the parliament decides that councillors must be the ones who must be in charge of the land tenure system and land administration.
“The land question for traditional councils remains a crucial point of debate. The evolution of South African land policies removed most powers and functions that we traditional leaders had with land administration in terms of customary laws,” Ndamase said.
The TKLA has created divisions among traditional leaders, he added. “Headmen do not participate in all traditional houses and sub-headmen are not paid. This causes division among traditional leaders themselves,” said Ndamase.
Nonkonyana said it was thought that all legislatures would by now, 30 years into democracy, have kings’ parliamentary councillors.
“This is in terms of the Constitution and the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers Act. In the Remuneration of Public Bearers Act, there is representation of kings.
“Unlike other provinces, Kwazulunatal has no problem. The problem is in other provinces, including the Eastern Cape, where this matter is not raised pertinently for consideration,” Nonkonyana said.
“We call for a review of the laws that regulate the institution of traditional leadership in the country,” he added.
“The government uses [divide and rule against] traditional leaders, where headmen are excluded from participating in houses of traditional leaders and municipal councils.
“They are treated as if they are not a tier of traditional leadership … this has created unnecessary tension between categories of traditional leadership in the Eastern Cape,” said Nonkonyana.
Nonkonyana has appointed his son, Prince Meyisi Nonkonyana, to act as his deputy in the Bhala Traditional Council in Flagstaff.
This article first appeared in Daily Dispatch on 1 July 2024.
