‘We want our chief to be formally recognised’
The community of Dzumeri village wants their chief, Divili Mavunda, who is currently recognised as a subchief, to be formally recognised as a senior chief, like other chiefs in the country who were once referred to as sub-chiefs during the colonial era.
On Monday last week, the community from the 20 villages under Hosi Dzumeri gathered and selected a team that went to Polokwane to submit a memorandum to Limpopo Premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba, and CoGHSTA MEC Basikopo Makamu, demanding recognition of their chief. According to Jerry Nkuna, spokesperson for the task team that submitted the memorandum in Polokwane, the community is demanding that Hosi Dzumeri be issued a certificate of recognition as a senior traditional leader, as he is currently recognised as a sub-chief, even though he does not serve under any traditional leader.
Traditionally, sub-chiefs were appointed based on lineage and community consensus within the framework of customary law, often serving as acting chiefs until the rightful chief was old enough to assume the chieftaincy. However, during the colonial and apartheid eras, the system was manipulated for political purposes. The colonial and apartheid governments introduced new levels of traditional leadership, such as “supreme chief,” “paramount chief,” and “sub-chief,” to control and manage local populations.
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These positions were often filled based on political loyalty rather than traditional criteria. In 2003, a new law governing traditional leadership called the Traditional Leadership and Governance Framework Act of 2003 (Act No. 41 of 2003), was introduced. The act provided a legislative framework for the recognition of traditional leadership following the country’s democratic principles. It was under this act that many traditional leaders, previously known as sub-chiefs, were formally recognised as chiefs.
However, Hosi Dzumeri has remained a sub-chief, and nothing has been done to change his status to this day. The Dzumeri community believes this compromises development in their area, as investors prefer to engage with senior chiefs, not sub-chiefs. “Take the recent issue of initiation schools, for example. They couldn’t approve his application to host one, claiming that someone else in our area was already hosting it. As a community, we don’t understand how an activity under another territorial authority would affect us,” he said.
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“This is why we want him to be issued a senior leadership certificate, so he can facilitate development in our villages without having to seek approval from anyone,” he said. He added that, beyond hindering development in the area, the issue also has the potential to cause conflicts between community members loyal to him, and those who oppose his leadership. According to him, the premier and MEC have been given 30 days to respond, failing which further action will be taken.
“I don’t want to speculate on our next step just yet, as we would first need to consult with the community. “We were peaceful on Monday, but I can’t guarantee the same if an angry community descends on Polokwane,” he said when asked about their next move. Meanwhile, Hosi Dzumeri receives all the benefits associated with being a chief, but he lacks significant authority to drive development in the villages he serves. A senior leadership certificate will grant him full authority to facilitate development across all 20 of his villages.
