/ 17 June 1994

Edged out, but Buthelezi fights back

The Zulu king may have elbowed Mangosuthu Buthelezi off the throne, but the Inkatha leader has not given up the fight, writes Farouk Chotia.

Having lost his stranglehold over Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini,Inkatha Freedom Party leader Mangosuthu Buthelezi last weekend issued thinly veiled threats to the monarch, questioned his loyalty to the Zulu nation and projected himself as being more powerful than the king.

By contrast the ANC rallied to the defence of Zwelithini, promising to protect him in the face of Buthelezi’s insults” by enshrining his rights in the national constitution– including a guarantee that the controlled kwaZulu/Natal provincial legislature would not have the power to withhold his salary.

The 24-year relationship between Zwelithini and Buthelezi has reached a turning-point, with the nephew finally elbowing his uncle off the royal throne in Nongoma. Informed sources painted a picture of Zwelithini as fearing Buthelezi.

Said one source “the king told the ANC delegation at one of their meetings that he does not want to return to the tyranny and terror he has faced. Those were his exact words.” An elated ANC Natal Midlands spokesman Blade Nzimande said this week that Buthelezi has lost his two “main pillars of support” — the kwaZulu government and the king.

Buthelezi denied there was “any clash or argument of any kind” between himself and the king. But he went on the accuse the ANC of trying to “worm its way into the kings confldence”. Observers believe that without Zwelithini’s backing, the IFP’s hand in upcoming constitutional talks will be considerably weakened.

At a watershed rally in Umlazi last weekend Buthelezi downplayed the significance of the monarch. The only way forward for the Zulu kingdom and for all the people in kwaZulu/Natal will come from you, the members of the lFP,” he said.

Buthelezi revealed that the former kwaZulu government had spent almost R7-million on Zwelithini’s five palaces, more than R2-million to provide him with labourers, more than 500 000 to assist him in developing “modern farm undertakings” and “to date we have actually spent over R4million on securing His Majesty’s personal position and on supplementary requirements around his person”.

Stoking emotions of betrayal among IFP supporters, Buthelezi told the crowd: “In a very real sense, this was your money. It was the people’s money … It was money you as ordinary people, gladly forewent in favour of that money being spent on schools, hospitals and health.”

Buthelezi projected himself as being more powerful than Zwelithini, saying he had “elevated” the monarchy to a position “other Zulu longs have failed to achieve”. He added that he was also behind” the fact that Zwelithini has emerged as a “modern” king. Buthelezi also raised the possibility of another king in his lifetime, even though he is 65 years old and Zwelithini is 20 years younger.

“I am loyal to His Majesty and I will die being loyal to whichever Zulu king walks in the footsteps of great Zulu kings …,” he said. He also remmded the monarch that he would be reliant on the kwaZulu/Natal provincial legislature for the “large budgets” he would need to maintain his “kingly way of life”. To overcome the loss of the monarch, observers believe the IFP could attempt to rebuild an alliance with the National Party — particularly its Western Cape region — to demand greater federal powers.

Observers believe that the IFP’s chances of winning local government elections next year have
also been significantly reduced. As a counter-strategy, Buthelezi may fight for the loyalty of chiefs through IFP-control of the kwaZulu/Natal provincial legislature.

Sources said Zwelithini was determined to ensure that his chiefs adopted a non-partisan role in the ANC-IFP conflict. He fired the first salvo in this direction when he attended the inauguration ceremony of a chief in Mtunzini shortly after the poll and voiced concern that some chiefs were “abusing” their powers.

Sources revealed that moves were afoot to convene a private meeting between several chiefs — including ANC kwaZulu/Natal parliamentarian chief Zibuse Mlaba and chief OT Xolo, a former kwaZulu deputy minister who has ditched the IFP — and Zwelithini. Sources said Zwelithini might also call a meeting of his chiefs to encourage them to adopt a non-partisan role.

Sources also said that while Zwelithini had no plan to publicly denounce Buthelezi, he would strip him of his status as “traditional prime minister” by excluding him from the Royal Council he plans to form to advise him on political and other issues. The sources said a senior prince who has played a pivotal role in encouraging the king to break away from Buthelezi was a strong candidate for the post of traditional prime minister.

But Buthelezi has strongly suggested that even if the king sacks him, he will continue to perform this function. At the Umlazi rally, he claimed he was “born” to inherit the post. To boost his claim, Buthelezi is increasingly interfering in the politics of kwaZulu/Natal in his capacity as “traditional prime minister”, giving orders to the elected premier, Frank Mdlalose.

He has brought Gideon Zulu, a prince loyal to him, into the provincial cabinet and pushed for Ulundi as the province’s capital with far greater vehemence than Mdlalose. By having Ulundi as the capital Buthelezi hopes the IFP will retain its image as a Zulu traditionalist party at a time when Zwelithini has ditched them.

Observers believe Zwelithini has indicated his preference for Pietermaritzburg by attending the opening of the provincial legislature in the city while boycotting a ceremony where Buthelezi was to have “presented” the kwaZulu/Natal cabinet to him. At the weekend Buthelezi also set out to smash the king’s credibility among IFP loyalists by questioning Zwelithini’s decision to replace his kwaZulu bodyguards with members of the Defence Force.

Sources said Zwelithini’s changing of the guard had stung Buthelezi the most: he has lost his eyes and ears in the Royal house, making it possible for the monarch to convene what Buthelezi called “clandestine” meetings with ANC leaders and surround himself with non-IFP princes.

Buthelezi said the move had taken place before the election when Zwelithini told him of a phone call he received from minister of foreign affairs Pik Botha, warning of “threats on his life” and the need to “tighten up” security. Buthelezi suggested that the king’s life was now in danger.