By Celani Sikhakhane
- King Misuzulu kaZwelithini condemned a cash heist gang during uMkhosi weLembe commemorations, after an attack at KwaKhangelamankengane Royal Palace killed two Fidelity guards on 7 September.
- The King used the event, which also marked his 52nd birthday, to renew his call for KwaZulu-Natal to be renamed KwaZulu.
King Misuzulu kaZwelithini has condemned the cash-in-transit gang responsible for an attack that killed two Fidelity security guards at the gates of KwaKhangelamankengane Royal Palace earlier this month.
Scrolla.Africa reported on 9 September that the guards died after armed robbers attacked their delivery truck near Nkunzane village, on the road between Nongoma and Pongola, on 7 September. The guards drove at high speed into the palace gates to escape, before robbers used explosives to blow open the truck, an explosion that also damaged the palace wall and a police house. A third guard was shot and hospitalised.
Police spokesperson Colonel Robert Netshiunda confirmed two guards died at the scene, and that police are investigating cash-in-transit robbery, two counts of murder, and attempted murder.
The King addressed the attack publicly for the first time on Thursday, during uMkhosi weLembe, the annual commemoration of King Shaka Day, held at King Zwelithini Stadium in uMlazi, south of Durban.
“What nonsense are you guys doing, even blasting cash vehicles at the gates of the royal palace of KwaKhangelamankengane? What kind of poverty or greed has turned you into such people, putting the lives of the royal family and the community surrounding the palace at risk? I am very angry with you who are doing this criminal activity. I am very angry about that incident, because the security guards of that company, who were innocent, died while trying to save their lives as they ran to the palace,” the King said, his anger echoed by the regiments in attendance.
He also said he would not be surprised if some police members were involved in such crimes, referencing recent exposures at the Madlanga Commission.
The King, marking his 52nd birthday during the same event, also used the occasion to renew his long-standing call for KwaZulu-Natal to be renamed KwaZulu, arguing that “Natal” represents the colonial figures who took Zulu land.
This year’s commemoration began at KwaDukuza, outside Ballito, where the King and traditional leaders performed sacred rituals at King Shaka’s grave, before the event moved to King Zwelithini Stadium in uMlazi for the main ceremony.
Some royal family members had objected to the venue change, saying sacred rituals, including communication between traditional leaders, the King and the ancestors to report on King Shaka’s remembrance, are traditionally tied to KwaDukuza specifically.
The move followed a separate shuffle around National Heritage Day. The event had originally been planned to take place in KwaZulu-Natal alongside uMkhosi weLembe, with President Cyril Ramaphosa expected to deliver the keynote address.
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture said the decision to hold the events separately followed discussions with King Misuzulu, concluding that uMkhosi weLembe deserved its own platform rather than sharing the day with a national event. Ramaphosa’s Heritage Day address ultimately went ahead in Oudtshoorn, in the Western Cape, after the venue changed twice in the days beforehand.
Pictured above: King Misuzulu kaZwelithini commemorating the life of King Shaka kaSenzangakhona, at his grave and in uMlazi.
Image source: KZN Office of the Premier
