Mbabane: The LaMgabhi Royal Kraal is falling apart! A visit to the Umphakatsi exposed a dilapidated round hut and a kraal overgrown with weeds. A kraal is an enclosure for cattle and other domestic animals made of wooden poles. By the look of things the two structures, which are the mark of every Umphakatsi are sure to collapse any time.
A woman who was found at the royal kraal said it all started when the chief of the area, Chief Ndzimanye II passed away. The chief died in 2019 after a long illness, which also saw him taking early retirement from the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) where he worked in the Criminal Investigation Department.
The woman who asked that her identity be concealed said after the chief’s death activity at the Umphakatsi slowed down. “Residents stopped honoring meetings and even the issues under discussion did not touch on rebuilding the structures,” said *Thula.
Currently, LaMgabhi is engaged in a land dispute with the neighboring Luyengweni chiefdom, which has been the issue most dominant in the chiefdom’s meetings. “Even the meetings are not called as often as during the time of Chief Ndzimanye,” said *Titi.
When the area’s headman, Mandlenkhosi Mavuso was contacted several times his mobile phone was not available.
No Acting Chief
A senior prince at the LaMgabhi Royal Kraal who also preferred anonymity said no one was taking leadership after the death of his brother, Chief Ndzimanye II. He said the headman of the area, Mandlenkhosi Mavuso was the one recognized person in leadership position, working with the chief’s runner and inner council, and yet little was seen in terms of development in the area. “As yet, the area is without an acting chief which could be reason there is no development in the area,” said the prince, adding that he sometimes takes the initiative to call meetings.
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