The King of the Zulu nation, Misuzulu KaZwelithini, has expressed disapproval of the recent Constitutional Court ruling, which allows men to take their wives’ surnames if they wish to do so.
The traditional leader of the largest ethnic group in South Africa says this is unprecedented in the nation and should be rejected.
The King was speaking on Wednesday in KwaDukuza (Stanger) in KwaZulu-Natal during the annual commemoration of King Shaka’s day.
Shaka Day commemoration
The day is commemorated every year to remember the legendary Zulu king who founded the nation in 1816 by uniting all the smaller kingdoms that spoke the Zulu language and formed the Zulu empire.
First to voice his displeasure at the ruling of the apex court was Inkosi Phathisizwe Chiliza, the deputy traditional prime minister of the Zulu nation who is also an MPL for the Umkhonto weSizwe Party in the KwaZulu-Natal legislature in Pietermaritzburg.
Introducing the King and inviting him to address the people, Chiliza asked the King to use the opportunity to address the matter
“Your Majesty, the podium is yours to address your people. Please address the issue of the Constitutional Court which said men can take the surnames of their wives. Something we have never heard of,” Chiliza said in Zulu.
End of the world
In the middle of his speech, King Misuzulu addressed it. He said Zulu men should not follow the ruling and take the surnames of their wives.
“My people (Nina beSilo), this is rot and the end of the world, don’t accept it. As I have said, we should stick to our values that have guided us since the time of Ilembe (King Shaka) and all the other kings. We must not let go of that.
“Do you know a nation is led astray? They do so by making it do things that are not right and things they have never done before. Yes, that is how you lead them astray without them noticing. You just put a trap and on the other side. Put something nice and say to get there, you must pass here (the trap),” the King said.
Meanwhile, speaking at the same commemoration, KZN premier, Thamsanqa Ntuli, asked men in the province to stand up and fight gender based violence and other scourges plaguing it like illegal immigration.
“How can you, as men in the province, remain silent with all these challenges? Please stand up and be counted during these tough times,” Ntuli pleaded with the men.
