Despite appeals for unity and reconciliation in the Zulu royal family, the protracted throne battle is far from over and has now reached the Constitutional Court.

Prince Simakade Zulu, the half-brother of king Misuzulu kaZwelithini, is opposed to the recognition of Misuzulu as the legitimate Amazulu king and has filed papers in the highest court challenging the Supreme Court of Appeal’s (SCA) recent ruling.

Last month, the SCA overruled the Pretoria High Court’s 2023 judgment that had set aside Misuzulu’s recognition as monarch by President Cyril Ramaphosa. After the ruling, Misuzulu called an imbizo and invited all the royal family members to sit down and talk peace, however, Simakade argues that the SCA order is flawed.

In his judgment, Deputy President of the SCA judge Dumisani Zondi said the allegations presented that the customary law was not followed in the May 2021 meeting were not sufficient for Pretoria High Court Judge Norman Davis to refer the matter to an investigative committee.

In his application, Simakade asks that the Constitutional Court substitute the SCA order with the Pretoria High Court order, which set aside the recognition of Misuzulu as king.

“First, the SCA’s fundamentally mistaken finding that the underlying identification dispute (in which Prince Misuzulu was purportedly identified by the Zulu Royal Family as Isilo) was res judicata.

“As set out in greater detail below, the SCA applied an unconstitutional and improper conception of the common law doctrine of res judicata to find that the issue that I had raised before the High Court had already been determined against me in prior proceedings, and in circumstances where I established beyond doubt that I played no part in those prior proceedings and was not even served with the papers,” reads Simakade’s affidavit.

Simakade was referring to the Pietermaritzburg High Court ruling where Judge Mjabuliseni Madondo ruled that Misuzulu was heir to the throne and correctly appointed during the 14 May 2021 royal family meeting.

Simakade argued that despite demonstrating clearly that he was not part of Madondo’s ruling in  his affidavits, the SCA did not consider these.

Furthermore, Simakade said the SCA’s ‘second error was a gravely flawed interpretation of section 8(4) of the Leadership Act, which effectively nullified the mandatory statutory duty imposed on the President to investigate legitimate disputes about whether a traditional leader was correctly identified under custom’.

He said that in so doing, the SCA failed to interpret the section in a manner which gives effect to the constitutional recognition of traditional leadership.

“I seek an order upholding the appeal against the SCA’s judgment, together with an order that mandates adherence to the Leadership Act, and ensures that the integrity of the Zulu Kingship selection process is upheld through the proper statutory mechanisms,” said Simakade.

Prince Gibizizwe Zulu, who supports Misuzulu in the dispute over the throne, said the king would not comment on the appeal for now.

willem.phungula@inl.co.za

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