Ramaphosa mourns regent of Zulu nation
Queen Mantfombi, the third wife of the recently deceased Zulu King Goodwill Zwelithini, was elected regent while the royal family was in a three-month mourning period before the next monarch was named.
PRETORIA, April 30 (ANA) – South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday sent condolences to the Zulu nation and royal family following the death of regent Queen Shiyiwe Mantfombi Dlamini Zulu.
The queen’s death follows that of Zulu monarch King Goodwill Zwelithini ka Bhekuzulu in March.
“We extend our thoughts, prayers and hearts once more to the Royal Family who, in the midst of mourning the passing of the beloved King, are now called upon to bid farewell to the Regent in sadly short succession,” Ramaphosa said in a statement issued by the Presidency.
“We stand by the Royal Family and the nation in this hour of compounded grief.”
Traditional Prime Minister to the Zulu monarch Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi announced the passing of the 65-year-old regent on Thursday night.
“This has taken us by surprise and left us utterly bereft. It is true that the Lord alone knows the days that He has allotted to each one of us,” Buthelezi said, adding that “while we are all rightly grief-stricken, there will be no leadership vacuum in the Zulu nation”.
He said further announcements would be made on the queen’s funeral and other necessary arrangements would be made in due course.
Queen Mantfombi was admitted to hospital last Wednesday amid looming divisions in the Zulu royal family over who should be her adviser.
The queen, who was the third wife of the recently deceased King Zwelithini, was elected regent for a three-month mourning period before the next monarch was named. She was chosen for the position among the king’s five wives because she was born from the royal family of Eswatini.
Her first son Prince Misuzulu is the front runner to the throne and was expected to be announced as new monarch once the mourning period for King Zwelithini lapsed.
– African News Agency (ANA), Editing by Stella Mapenzauswa
