Chief’s remains disappear
When the royal family visited the grave, they found it empty and the tombstone placed there in March this year, had also been removed.
BARBERTON – Family members of the late Chief Masoyi Mashingo II were shocked to discover that his remains were no longer in the grave where he was buried in 1937.
It is alleged that they have been removed by a certain member of the family whose name is known to Mpumalanga News. Sources within the family reveal that this saga came to the light after one of them blew the whistle and alerted the others.
When they visited the grave, they found it was empty and the tombstone placed there in March this year, had also been removed.
Speaking to this publication, one of the family members, whose identity cannot be revealed for safety reasons said, “We started receiving messages informing us that we had to donate money so that we could re-bury the remains of Chief Mashingo II, which raised a lot of questions.
“We have learnt that one member of the royal family was behind this saga but we are not going to fold our hands and watch him destroy our dignity.
“After we were informed about this, we decided to visit the grave and when we arrived, we found that there was nothing left. This is very disturbing. We are not happy about it.
“One’s remains ought to be respected at all times. We are Africans, we respect our culture and we are very disappointed,” he explained.
This newspaper has learnt that it’s alleged that there are two families within the royal house who are fighting over the chief’s remains.
The family opened a case at the local police station. Speaking to this reporter, the spokesperson for the SAPS, Const Tutu Nkosi, confirmed that some members of the royal family had opened the case.
The provincial chairperson of the house of traditional leaders, Kgoshi Lameck Mokoena had this to say regarding the matter, “First of all, let me indicate that as the house, we are very shocked about this incident.
“Not so long ago we heard that there were family members who wanted to remove the remains of the chief in Barberton and bring them back home, but others said Asingamhluphi angagutjwa ngoba uphumulile.
“According to our traditions, when the remains of the king or chief are removed, all family members need to unite and speak with one voice and there are authorities which need to be informed, such as the municipality and police.
“But in this case, we don’t understand exactly what’s going on.
“We are shocked and surprised about this and we can’t keep quiet as we also want to know what has happened to the remains.
“They can’t just disappear. I’m not saying we are going to interrogate the family, but as traditional leaders, we will assist them so that we can resolve this matter and restore the dignity of the late chief. It will depend on the families whether they request a meeting with house since this is a family matter,” he concluded.
