MBOMBELA – The deputy minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs, Mr Obed Bapela, applauded the province for conducting a safe and incident-free ingoma (initiation season).
Bapela addressed the media last Friday and voiced his satisfaction with regard to the manner in which the province is handling the ingoma issues.
But even so, he said, national government will keep Mbombela under the spotlight.
“We are actually happy with this province but we will put it under the ring of fire until after next season,” he said.
Next year over 40 000 Ndebele clan members are expected to conduct their rituals which are normally hosted every four years.
“This is the reason why we will keep monitoring the province, but once the Ndebele season is done, we will remove the province from our ring of fires,” he explained.
Kgoshi Lameck Mathupa Mokoena, provincial chairperson of the Traditional House of Leadership, reported on the resolutions from its latest Indaba.
“There have been events in the country that show that the institution of traditional leadership is seriously under attack from some sectors which continuously question its role and relevance in the current democratic dispensation.
“The Indaba resolved that the National House of Traditional Leaders and the department must look into the matter of proper title for traditional councils.
“Amakhosi must harmonise relations between them and their communities especially on issues of land use or allocation.
“Amakhosi must also discourage their communities from destroying public property during protests,” he said.
Mokoena said the Department of Economic Development must ensure that mining houses and other big businesses in traditional community areas plough back into those communities.
