Zulu royal family: Buthelezi says King did receive medical treatment

As the row between Zulu King Misuzulu kaZwelithini and his prime minister Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi deepens, the IFP founder on Tuesday insisted that His Majesty recently received medical treatment in eSwatini.

“His Majesty received medical attention at eZulwini Private Hospital on Saturday, July 1, and the doctors who attended to him are known,” Buthelezi said.

This is despite the King, in a video circulating on social media, seen denying that he received any medical treatment during his eSwatini visit.

ALSO READ | ‘Breakdown’ in communication leads to speculation around King Misuzulu’s health

There is nothing wrong with me. There is no poisoning whatsoever. Everything is well-functioning. Please don’t listen to everything which people say
While Buthelezi reiterated that the statement he released last Saturday — saying the King was receiving treatment in eSwatini amid fears that he had been poisoned — was based on information which the Zulu nation prime minister received from the King’s brother Prince Vumile, Buthelezi made it clear in his statement issued on Tuesday that the King did receive medical treatment while in eSwatini.

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Our Viewpoint | Zulu royal family
The King’s spokesperson, Prince Afrika Zulu, Buthelezi said, misled the Zulu nation when he issued a statement denying that His Majesty received medical treatment during his eSwatini visit.

“What Prince Africa is not telling the nation is that he approached the Swazis — in particular HRH Prince Vumile — asking them to assist so that His Majesty could leave KwaZulu-Natal at night, to urgently seek medical attention in eSwatini.

“Further, it is of serious concern that His Majesty’s latest travel to eSwatini did not conform to established protocols, such as informing the royal family, the premier of the province, or the head of state, that His Majesty would be out of the country,” Buthelezi said.

ALSO READ | Zulu King dismisses poisoning claims

In his rebuttal, Afrika accused those “peddling rumours” about the King’s health of attempting to portray His Majesty as a person who is “unfit” to rule. “It appears that there is an orchestrated agenda and a desperate narrative to communicate defamatory and baseless claims of His Majesty’s ill-health.”

The fact that the King in his video reiterates what Zulu said in his media statement issued last Sunday, is confirmation that the statement was approved by His Majesty.

However, in his latest media statement, Buthelezi avoided drawing the King into the dispute.

“Since that announcement [Sunday statement] Prince Africa Zulu, head of communication and stakeholder relations in His Majesty’s Office, has issued a rather disjointed counter-statement, as well as a video. While I do not wish to dwell on the theatrics of it all, I find this behaviour unbecoming,” Buthelezi said.

Not long ago, Buthelezi revealed that the King was no longer talking to him directly and that His Majesty used intermediaries to relay messages to the prime minister.

ALSO READ | Prince Africa told to back off

While the ANC on Monday indicated that it has since assigned former Health minister Zweli Mkhize to mediate between Buthelezi and the King, the IFP founder on Tuesday scoffed at the ANC’s initiative.

When our late King was hospitalised, I meticulously and regularly kept the nation updated.
“Why then must a political party now seek to mediate a non-existing feud, when the royal family can resolve its own internal matters, if such matters arise,” he said.