Fears for the safety of AmaZulu King MisuZulu kaZwelithini have been heightened ahead of his coronation, which is expected to take place at the end of May.
Sunday World has established that security around MisuZulu has been beefed up since the security threat last Saturday in Newcastle where he was apparently told that his life was in imminent danger.
The AmaZulu king was attending the umembeso of soon-to-be-wife Ntokozo Mayisela. Umembeso is an African traditional ceremony where the groom gives gifts to the bride’s parents and family before the wedding.
The drama unfolded during the proceedings when MisuZulu was allegedly informed of an attempt to assassinate him. He has immediately whisked away with his fiancée. There was panic among his relatives and the throngs of people who attended the ceremony.
Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, the traditional prime minister to the AmaZulu nation, told Sunday World that he was concerned about the security threat. “As traditional prime minister to the Zulu monarch and nation, prince Buthelezi MP and other senior members of the royal family, including the matriarch, were concerned about the safety of his majesty the king ahead of the umembeso, which took place last weekend. They expressed these concerns to his majesty ahead of the function,” said Liezl van der Merwe, Buthelezi’s spokesperson.
A royal insider said fingers pointed to an inside job and that besides the protection being offered by the police, there had been additional private intelligence personnel to monitor the security of the king. The insider said there was talk of extending the use of private intelligence services until his coronation.
He said the news of the security threat had reached the ears of MisuZulu’s uncle, King Mswati III, who allegedly supports the idea of beefing up security around his nephew. MisuZulu is the first-born son of late Queen Regent Mantfombi Dlamini, who was the third wife of the late Zulu king Zwelithini kaBhekuZulu. She is Mswati III’s sister.
Despite President Cyril Ramaphosa declaring MisuZulu the undisputed king of the Zulu nation, a faction opposed to his kingship is approaching courts to challenge his ascendancy to the throne. The faction filed papers at the Gauteng High Court wanting to nullify Ramaphosa’s decision. It claims he erred in his decision and did not take into consideration the recommendations of a panel appointed by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to mediate between the two factions.
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