By Sihle Mavuso
Zulu Queen Sibongile Dlamini, the first wife of the late King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBekhuzulu, has lost her Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) bid to be declared the only rightful wife of the late King who passed away on 12 March 2021.
Queen Dlamini of KwaKhethomthandayo palace in Nongoma in northern KwaZulu-Natal claimed that the King was legally barred from marrying the other five queens that he wed after her.
She argued that this was because she and the King were married in community of property in a civil ceremony.
Among the queens she argued King Zwelithini should not have married after her was the late Queen Mantfombi Damini-Zulu from the Kingdom of Eswatini, who is the mother of King Misuzulu kaZwelithini, the reigning Zulu monarch.
She also wanted 50% of the late King’s estate and for the other queens to share the remaining 50%.
Queen Sibongile first took the matter to the Pietermaritzburg High Court in mid-2021, but Judge Isaac Madondo dismissed her application.
In the Pietermaritzburg hearing, Queen Sibongile admitted that she recognised the marriages of the other queens and was not seeking to nullify them, but that she wanted 50% of the estate.
In its ruling on Friday, the SCA said Queen Sibongile had not demonstrated any tangible and justifiable advantage about her position (as grounds to) grant the declaratory order sought.
“In all the circumstances, despite the misdirection we pointed out earlier, the high court properly exercised its discretion by refusing to grant the declaratory relief,” the ruling said.
Queen Sibongile is yet to comment on this latest legal setback.
Pictured above: Zulu Queen Sibongile Dlamini.
Image source: X
