04 Jan 2016

The Minister of Local Government and Rural Development, Mr Slumber Tsogwane says the government recognises Basubiya and their chief, Kgosi Moffat Sinvula.

Speaking at the Kavimba kgotla, Minister Tsogwane said an association dubbed Murwa Liswaani Chieftainship Review and Resettlement submitted a petition in 2006 requesting the government to consider Kgosi Johane Chika of Parakarungu as the chief of the Basubiya.

“They stated that Kgosi Chika’s lineage was well documented and clear as reported in a government supervised Commission of Inquiry of 1925,” he explained.

He said the district commissioner informed the permanent secretary in his ministry in 2010 that some Basubiya preferred Kgosi Sinvula as their chief.

“The Basubiya were divided over who their kgosi was,” he said.

Minister Tsogwane appreciated his predecessor at the ministry, Mr Peter Siele, saying that he investigated and documented the whole scenario for a sound resolution.

He said the government expects that there would be no further conflicts over the matter.

A jubilant resident, Mr Johnson Mabuta, explained that the feud had been brewing since 1928.

He further requested the minister to tackle similar situations bedevilling other ethnic groups.

A village elder, Mr Kamwi Kalundu said the minister’s announcement was a cue for the Basubiya to put aside their differences and unify for a common cause. ENDS