The Supreme Court of Appeal has validated the recognition of Misuzulu kaZwelithini as the Zulu king.
In a judgment delivered on Monday, the court based in Bloemfontein ruled that President Cyril Ramaphosa's recognition of Misuzulu as king was lawful. It also rejected the high court's view that Ramaphosa had failed to follow procedure by not appointing an investigative committee.
"The power to choose a king or queen resides in the royal family, which is one of the traditional structures established by the Leadership Act. The president has no role in the identification of a king or queen. His role is to recognise the identified king or queen and this he does upon a request by the royal family," the court ruling says.
The judgment comes after a faction of the royal family nominated Prince Simakade Zulu as the rightful heir following the death of King Goodwill Zwelithini in 2021 and disputed Misuzulu's recognition as the successor.
The Simakade faction then approached the courts, and in 2023 the high court said Ramaphosa's recognition of Prince Misuzulu was flawed and ordered the him to appoint an investigative committee to review the process.
The president has no role in the identification of a king or queen
— Court ruling
However, Misuzulu, Ramaphosa and the minister of cooperative government and traditional affairs appealed the matter, and the court upheld their appeal on Monday. It said the identification of Mizusulu as king had already been legally settled in the Pietermaritzburg high court and that there was no need for further investigations.
"The fact of the matter is that by the time that the president took a decision to recognise Prince Misuzulu, there was neither evidence nor allegations that the Zulu customary law and customs were not complied with in the identification of Prince Misuzulu."
The court also found that the Zulu royal family followed customary law in identifying Misuzulu and also deemed the role played by now late Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi as traditional prime minister of the Zulu kingdom following Zwelithini's death, was legitimate.
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