By A Correspondent – The Bulawayo High Court has overturned the appointment of Ms Zanele Khumalo as Regent Chief Mabhikwa, ruling in favour of Mr John Khumalo, who contested the appointment on cultural and procedural grounds.

Justice Mposeni Dube this week remitted the matter back to the Chief’s Council, emphasising that courts do not have jurisdiction over the appointment of traditional chiefs or regents. However, the ruling highlighted irregularities in how Ms Khumalo’s appointment was carried out.

The dispute over the rightful heir to the Mabhikwa chieftainship escalated when family members rejected Ms Khumalo’s elevation, citing cultural traditions that allegedly prevent women from assuming such roles. The court found that her appointment had been improperly handled, as some chiefs in her clan had overridden input from the Mabhikwa-Khumalo family.

Mr John Khumalo argued that the chieftainship in the family has historically never passed to a woman and claimed that Ms Khumalo’s appointment had caused widespread dissatisfaction among family members and the broader Lupane community.

The Mabhikwa chieftainship became vacant following the death of Chief Vusumuzi Khumalo in a tragic road accident on May 22, 2022. Initially, his uncle, John Khumalo, was appointed acting chief. Earlier this year, Ms Zanele Khumalo was named regent chief to serve for nine years, until Vusumuzi’s son, Wayne Makhosemvelo Khumalo, reached adulthood and assumed the position of substantive chief.

The ruling now returns the matter to the Chief’s Council, leaving the succession of the Mabhikwa chieftainship unresolved and underscoring the tensions between traditional customs and procedural governance in Zimbabwe’s leadership structures.