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By Celani Sikhakhane
- Zolani Mkiva says his royal lineage traces to the amaMiya clan, with recognised traditional authority in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.
- Mkiva, Secretary-General of Contralesa, says he was formally appointed a sitting traditional leader by the late King Zwelonke Sigcawu in 2018.
Zolani Mkiva, the late Nelson Mandela’s praise singer, has defended his royal lineage, after some traditional leaders in the Eastern Cape accused him of misrepresenting himself as a prince.
Mkiva told Scrolla.Africa on Tuesday that his identity and public service are rooted in the royal lineage of the amaMiya clan, a traditional lineage with recognised authority in both the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.
“The amaMiya heritage represents more than ancestry. It is a tradition of leadership, loyalty to the institution of kingship, cultural custodianship and service to the people,” Mkiva said.
He said his lineage is historically connected to the great Xhosa tradition of kingship, and to the struggles and institutions through which African traditional leadership preserved its authority and identity. He said his great-great-grandfather, Mkiva, was a traditional leader and one of the generals who served under King Hintsa kaKhawuta.
“His generation represents an era in which traditional leaders were not merely custodians of territory, but also military commanders, advisors, diplomats and defenders of the sovereignty and dignity of their people,” he said.
Mkiva said his great-grandfather, Dubulirhamba Mkiva, continued this tradition of independent customary leadership.
“He was the head of Inkqila kaVanqa and resisted attempts to subordinate his traditional authority to the imposed headmanship system. His position reflected the broader historical assertion that African customary institutions possessed their own structures of authority, which could not simply be reduced to colonial administrative arrangements,” he said.
Dubulirhamba later served as a representative of King Zwelidumile at the iBhunga legislature in Mthatha, acting as a senior advisor to the King.
Mkiva, currently Secretary-General of Contralesa, said this legacy has profoundly shaped his own understanding of the relationship between kingship, traditional leadership and public governance.
He said the late King Mpendulo Zwelonke Sigcawu formally designated and appointed him to assume the role of a sitting traditional leader in 2018.
Pictured above: Zolani Mkiva, praise singer to the late President Nelson Mandela.
Image source: Facebook (Zolani Mkiva)
