Estcourt - Another prominent KwaZulu-Natal traditional leader has been killed, leaving the chiefdom leaderless and setting it up for a bitter succession tussle.
Inkosi Zwelakhe Ndaba of Ntabamhlophe in Estcourt in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands was shot several times Friday night and died on the spot, while his killers fled.
According to shocked villagers who alerted IOL to the killing, Ndaba was killed in a hail of bullets by unknown people who later fled the scene in a car.
NEWS: Another KwaZulu-Natal traditional leader has been killed. Inkosi Zwelakhe Ndaba of Ntabamhlophe in Estcourt in the Midlands was shot several times last night, died on the spot and his killers fled. KZN COGTA has confirmed the killing that left people shell-shocked. @IOL
— Sihle Mavuso (@ZANewsFlash) February 11, 2023
The assailants stormed his home while he was already asleep, and opened fire, using what villagers claimed to be high-calibre firearms.
“He was already in bed when they stormed his home and shot him dead, no one has an idea why he was killed,” a villager told IOL.
The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) has confirmed the killing that left Ndaba's people shell-shocked.
It’s not the first time a traditional leader has been killed in KwaZulu-Natal or survived an attempt on his life.
In November last year, Inkosi Patrick Siphamandla Khumalo of the Amantungwa traditional council in Utrecht (eMadlangeni) in northern KwaZulu-Natal survived an attempt on his life when his would-be killers pounced on him outside his home.
Khumalo is the chairperson of the KZN house of traditional leaders in the Amajuba district.
He was installed to lead his clan in 2012 by the late Zulu King, Goodwill Zwelithini KaBhekuzulu.
In November 2021, the acting Inkosi of the Zondi clan of Nkandla in northern KwaZulu-Natal, Mzomuhle Zondi of the Zondi traditional council, was gunned down by unknown assailants.
Three people are already behind bars and facing prosecution for the gruesome murder that shocked the province.
In September last year, shortly after the Zulu reed dance, which was convened at eNyokeni royal palace in Nongoma, a confidant of the late King Goodwill Zwelithini and an advisor to reigning King, Misuzulu KaZwelithini, Dr Dumisani Khumalo, was gunned down.
He was killed at his home near the town of Nongoma while returning from the reed dance, and so far, no one has been arrested for the crime.
Khumalo was also the chairperson of the Osuthu royal council, a key structure in the hierarchy of the Zulu kingdom.
Current Affairs