Durban - Senior Zulu Prince Mbonisi Zulu and half-brother of the late King Goodwill Zwelithini is not backing down from his long and multipronged fight to halt the coronation of King Misuzulu.
It has since emerged that a few days before KwaZulu-Natal deputy judge president Isaac Madondo dismissed on April 21, 2022, his leave to appeal and the coronation was indefinitely mothballed, his lawyers wrote on April 19 to President Cyril Ramaphosa asking him to suspend the historic process.
The highly anticipated coronation was billed for May 28 this year and it has since been indefinitely postponed. This was after the King decreed that it cannot continue while the nation is still mourning after the KwaZulu-Natal floods left more than 400 people dead and a trail of destruction.
Using Johannesburg-based Mabuza Attorneys, Prince Mbonisi said Ramaphosa must show leadership on the matter at hand.
“The purpose of this letter is to seek the intervention of the Honourable President to postpone the coronation ceremony pending the final determination of the review of his recognition decision by a court of law.
“We respectfully submit that it stands to reason that the application to review and set aside the decision of the President to recognise Prince Misuzulu Sinqobile Zulu as King of AmaZulu will not have been determined or finalised by a court of law at the time intended for the coronation ceremony, i.e. 28 May 2022.”
UPDATE: Prince Mbonisi is not backing down from his fight to halt the coronation of King Misuzulu. Days before Judge Isaac Madondo dismissed his request to appeal & the coronation was indefinitely mothballed, his lawyers wrote to Ramaphosa asking him to suspend it. @DailyNewsSA
— Sihle Mavuso (@ZANewsFlash) April 28, 2022
“It is patently obvious that the review will be rendered futile and academic if the coronation ceremony were to proceed in these circumstances,” the law firm argues on behalf of the Prince.
Prince Mbonisi, through his lawyers, told Ramaphosa that it was risky for him to allow the coronation to go ahead even though he is challenging it and there is a possibility that another court may find in his favour.
“It cannot be said at this stage that the review application has no reasonable prospects of success. If anything, there is a reasonable possibility or likelihood that the review court will find that the President’s decision to recognise Prince Misuzulu Sinqobile Zulu as King of the AmaZulu Kingship was unconstitutional on the basis set out in the aforementioned application. In that event, there will be confusion and uncertainty about the legitimacy and credibility of the incumbent to the throne of the AmaZulu Kingship. All these uncertainties can be avoided by merely awaiting the decision of the review court.”
The Prince’s legal team also said it is important that all grievances are settled before the coronation goes ahead.
“It is our respectful submission that the leadership of the AmaZulu Kingship goes far beyond the interests of the immediate parties to the succession dispute, it is hugely significant not only to the AmaZulu Nation but to the country as a whole. It is therefore critically important that all succession grievances be fully and properly ventilated in a court of law.
“This will serve to engender the credibility and the public’s trust of whoever ultimately emerges as the legitimate incumbent to the throne of the AmaZulu Kingship. Unfortunately, there can be no expediency or short cut to the resolution of a matter of this great magnitude and importance.”
Attorney Eric Mabuza from Mabuza Attorneys confirmed that their next stop is the Supreme Court of Appeal.
“The (next) petition will be to the SCA. We are working on it, you can appreciate I am fairly new, so I need to familiarise myself with the matter,” Mabuza said.
King Misuzulu's lawyers have previously said they are always prepared to fight any attempt to interdict the coronation or any other legal battle.
sihle.mavuso@inl.co.za
Daily News