SIX years of a drawn-out battle in the chieftainship
wrangle, 12-years at the helm as the supreme traditional leader in her area, a
Filabusi female Chief feels her journey in the male dominated leadership role
is a roller-coaster ride that never stops.
Chief Ndube, born Nonhlanhla Sibanda, says she knew from a
young age that she was somewhat different from other children. At age 10, she
was already running around assisting her father, the Chief of Filabusi, Insiza
District, in Matabeleland South Province in executing his duties.
While her peers played house, record books and keeping a
diary for her father occupied the mind of the young girl. At the time she was
oblivious that fate would one day call upon her to use those skills.
In 2001 her father Chief Ndube born Andrew Sibanda passed
on and she was thrust into the throes of a leadership role that make even the
bravest of men quiver in their boots.
Born in a family of five, Nonhlanhla is the last-born
daughter of the late Chief Ndube, who took over the chieftainship in 1996.
Not only did death rob Nonhlanhla of a family pillar,
father, provider and protector, it also exposed her to the cutthroat world of
traditional leadership, with all its ugly side that is well documented in
history books.
His death marked the beginning of a six-year battle for the
chieftainship. The late Chief Ndube did not leave behind a son, who would
have automatically taken over the reins without the squabbles that later
followed his passing away.
“My sisters, who are all based overseas, had already left
the country when our father passed away and they all turned down the offer to
take over the reins. When it was my turn to decide, I did not think twice about
taking over and continuing with my father’s legacy but taking over the
chieftainship would not be that easy.
“There were disagreements in the family as to whether I was
the rightful person to take over the chieftainship, with my uncles arguing that
I could not take over because I’m a woman and in any case, was too young at the
time,” said Chief Ndube.
The matter was finally settled in September 2007 and a
fresh faced 22-year-old Chief Ndube officially took over the throne.
The first few months were the most difficult. All eyes were
on the young Chief, people taking every opportunity to find fault in every word
she uttered in public and every action she took.
She is still convinced even the ordinary men and women were
rating her leadership skills with each public appearance she made.
“People would come in their numbers to every public
appearance that I made and I’m convinced it was out of curiosity to see how a
female Chief would handle herself when addressing community meetings or
resolving disputes,” Chief Ndube told the Saturday Leisure at her homestead in
Filabusi.
Even to the most seasoned traditional leaders, disputes
among community members is an unavoidable way of life and at any given time,
Chief Ndube has her hands full resolving conflicts that arise within her
jurisdiction.
The most common disputes that warrant a sit down at her
traditional court are cases of community members accusing each other of
witchcraft, adultery, disputes over land and fighting between daughters-in law
and mothers-in law.
To make her traditional court an effective dispute
resolving chamber, she appointed advisors that assist her in settling disputes.
Her advisory council includes two elderly women, for the
purposes of gender equality and the same number of men.
“As expected, I’m the youngest and the advisors are there
to help me resolve conflicts but I deliberately included women in the advisory
council so that female complainants can also feel free to approach our
traditional courts for recourse,” she said.
The traditional court is a stone’s throw away from the
Chief’s homestead. Filabusi is a gold rich area and the abundance of the
precious yellow metal has attracted people from other provinces.
Life in Filabusi is not as simple and laid back to the
descendants of the area as they used to know it.
“Omakorokoza are causing havoc here in Filabusi. We
appreciate that the economy of the local area is being boosted by gold but not
everything that comes along with the influx of people from other provinces is
good for our people.
“Children are dropping out of school to search for gold,
the rate of early pregnancies is shooting up and we’re seeing girls as young as
14-years frequenting local bars because the makorokozas splash their money
around a lot.
“Gold money is certainly destroying lives and as community
leaders, we can only try and discourage our kids from dropping out of school to
join gold miners,” she said.
As the Saturday Leisure crew leaves the chief’s homestead
to have a look at the traditional court, we encounter two men who walk past us
on a narrow dusty road and to our amazement, the gentlemen do not even greet or
acknowledge the Chief.
They simply walk past us, pass quick glances and continue
their journey.
“They are definitely omakorokoza and I can assure you that
they don’t even know who I am. I’m not surprised because these people care less
about learning the traditional and cultural norms of this area. They are just
after the gold”.
When she talks about community projects she has in mind,
one gets the feeling Chief Ndube is passionate about the development of her
area. Adult education is close to her heart.
“Last year I introduced an adult learning programme where
the elderly take evening classes at
primary schools and the first group wrote their Grade Seven Examinations
in October. The idea is to afford the elderly a chance to learn to read and
write, which is a huge challenge as many of them have not been to school.
“I wish to spread the programme to other areas under my
jurisdiction but that can only be made possible if we get a donor to supply
them with stationery and other requirements,” she said
Turning to her personal life, a subject she prefers to keep
out of the public eye, Chief Ndube is married to Prosper Moyo, a self-employed
gentleman and the couple are expecting a child.
Contrary to popular belief that Chiefs are a well catered
lot who enjoy endless perks from the Government, Chief Ndube says she like the
rest of ordinary Zimbabweans, works hard to put food on the table for her
family.
“People think we live fancy lives, but as you can see, my
home is a modest place and I get up every morning to work like everyone else.
Of course, the car parked outside is a Government issued vehicle but that is
all there is to it.”
Because she cannot drive, her husband takes time off from
his work to take her to traditional leaders’ business meetings and conferences.
Her parting words to the Saturday Leisure crew is that
female Chiefs can execute their duties efficiently just like their male
counterparts, if not better. Chronicle
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