The sudden emergence of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP), which is branded around the cult figure, former president Jacob Zuma, has put his home village of Nkandla in northern KwaZulu-Natal under the microscope.
Staunch traditionalists and taxi associations that supported Zuma in his previous brushes with the law have warned that the inflammatory talk and the beating of war drums by Zuma sympathisers could bring back hostile relations in the village.
“We fear that there might be political intolerance because those who love Msholozi believe that there are people who want him dead,” explained local induna, Zamokwakhe Biyela.
“But we are weary as a community not to be divided.”
Taxi warlords back Zuma
Leading up to Zuma’s imminent arrest in the aftermath of his refusal to give evidence at the commission probing allegations of state capture, it was the staunch traditionalists and taxi warlords who stood on Zuma’s corner and threatened bloodshed if he was to be arrested.
Nkandla was the battleground where residents defied their political party lines to protest Zuma’s incarceration.
Nhlakanipho Mzolo, a member of one of the taxi associations who was among the taxi operators to stage a fierce fight against Zuma’s arrest, told Sunday World that Zuma was their hero.
“We will follow Nxamalala [Zuma’s clan name] wherever he goes, and we are prepared to destroy anyone standing in our way,” threatened Mzolo.
He explained that they had mobilised all taxi associations under the banner of the MKP.
Ingoma festival
On the other hand, Thamsanqa Ntuli, IFP chairperson in KwaZulu-Natal and the party’s premier candidate, who is also the district mayor, explained that although in previous elections Nkandla had been one of the peaceful voting districts, they were leaving nothing to chance.
“This is precisely one of the reasons that we’re continuously engaging the community about the importance of having peaceful elections,” Ntuli said.
“Just last Saturday, during Easter holidays, we organised an Ingoma Festival because Nkandla is a traditional community and we use the traditional ceremonies to spread the message of political tolerance.”
The festival attracts hundreds of people from various hostels in Durban and Johannesburg to their ancestral place of Nkandla, where they compete for bragging rights.
While previously the area was engulfed by factional fights and the settling of old scores whenever the men visited their homesteads from the big towns, where they worked, the Ingoma Festival has proven to be a vital cog driving social cohesion and political tolerance.
Failed attempts to woo Nkandla voters
The ANC has previously failed to gain ground in the Nkandla local municipality, which is under the control of the IFP, despite Zuma’s presence as a huge figure in South African politics.
It is going to be interesting whether the MKP will change Zuma’s fortunes by enabling him to woo the villagers to support the formation in the May 29 general elections.
The provincial department of community safety announced recently that extra law enforcement will be deployed to areas regarded as hot spots for political violence ahead of the elections.
These areas include Nongoma, Bergville, Nkandla, eThekwini, and Maphumulo, among others.
