The Ndiweni clan of Ntabazinduna has appointed an acting chief to assist Inkosi Nhlanhlayamangwe Ndiweni, who is currently in the United Kingdom, while maintaining that he remains the substantive chief of the area.
In a letter addressed to the Umguza District Development Coordinator (DDC), the royal house said the appointment was made on 31 March 2026 following deliberations within the family.
“The House Ndiweni of the Clan Ndiweni of Ntabazinduna has seen it appropriate and indeed in line with the Traditional Leaders Act, to appoint an Acting Chief, until such time Inkosi Nhlanhlayamngwe Ndiweni returns,” read the letter.
The family named Wishes Ndiweni (ID number supplied) as the acting chief, effective from 31 March 2026.
“In terms of customs, traditions, practices and norms, the House Ndiweni has chosen Wishes Ndiweni as the Acting Chief of Ntabazinduna. Wishes Ndiweni has served the House Ndiweni well over the years and is capable of achieving the tasks ahead,” the family said.
The letter clarified that recent family meetings held on 29 July 2025 and 12 March 2026 were not about identifying a successor to the throne of the late Paramount Chief Khayisa Ndiweni, stating the succession process was completed in 2013 to 2014 and remains in effect.
“Nhlanhla Felix Ndiweni is still the Substantive Chief of Ntabazinduna. This is because the ‘attempted’ dethronement of Inkosi Nhlanhlayamngwe Ndiweni did not have legal merit and is still before the High Court,” the family wrote.
The Ndiweni family said they have made it clear in both meetings and on numerous occasions, that their “ identification process “ within the Electoral College of Succession would always “ identify “ Nhlanhla Felix Ndiweni as the Substantive Chief of Ntabazinduna.
“This is in terms of custom, traditions, practise and norm of The Amangwe Nation and peoples, also in terms of the Nguni Nation and people,” said the family.
“Whilst this matter is still being addressed, the House Ndiweni of the Clan Ndiweni of Ntabazinduna, has seen it appropriate and indeed in line with the Traditional Leaders Act, to appoint an Acting Chief, until such time Inkosi Nhlanhlayamngwe Ndiweni returns.
“Inkosi Nhlanhlayamangwe Ndiweni continues to discharge his responsibilities to the present date. In this regard Inkosi Nhlanhlayamngwe Ndiweni will continue to assist and help the Acting Chief and people of Ntabazinduna in all matters as and when required to do so.
In a separate statement, Chief Ndiweni elaborated on the rationale behind the appointment, underscoring that the Ntabazinduna chieftaincy is not vacant.
“When a chief is not at his jurisdiction for some reason he is allowed to appoint an Acting Chief,” he said.
The chief explained that on 29 July 2025 and 12 March 2026, government officials came to Ntabazinduna to meet the Ndiweni family, claiming the chieftaincy was vacant.
“The House Ndiweni said it was not vacant. The government said but here is the dethronement letter. The House Ndiweni said ‘we never received such a letter as the body that by law, The Traditional Leaders Act, is in charge of such matters’,” Chief Ndiweni said.
He noted that the government argued it is the appointing body by law, but the Ndiweni family countered that the Traditional Leaders Act designates the Chieftaincy Electoral College of each chieftaincy as the selecting body.
“It is this ‘identification’ by the Electoral College that is then sent to the Appointing authority in the government that is the President’s Office to appoint the identified individual from that particular chieftaincy Clan. So in short, when it comes to the appointment of Chiefs, the President takes instruction from the Chieftaincy Clan,” he said.
Chief Ndiweni stated that the House of Ndiweni reminded the government that the “attempted” dethronement of 2019 was stopped by the High Court and the matter is still pending.
“Hence the House Ndiweni’s position that they still have a chief. That the seat is not vacant. Hence their appointment of a Sub Chief as they are allowed to do,” he said.
Following the death of Chief Khayisa Ndiweni in August 2010, his son, Nhlanhlayamangwe Felix Ndiweni, was installed as chief and formally recognised in 2014 by then‑President Robert Mugabe.
However, his appointment was contested within sections of the royal family, including by his brother Douglas, who raised concerns over the succession process.
The disagreement intensified in November 2019 when President Emmerson Mnangagwa removed Chief Ndiweni from office, ordering the recovery of state‑issued property and directing the Ndiweni clan to identify a successor.
Chief Ndiweni challenged his removal at the High Court, arguing he had not been given a fair hearing.
Although he later relocated to the United Kingdom, he has maintained he remains the legitimate chief.
In February 2026, Douglas Ndiweni told CITE that the family would soon submit a preferred nominee to the government, saying, “This matter has taken too long. The family will present its candidate so that a substantive chief can be installed.”
However, the latest letter from the House of Ndiweni appears to contradict that position, reaffirming Nhlanhlayamangwe Ndiweni as the substantive chief and describing the acting appointment as temporary.
The Ndiweni clan has previously argued that the succession was completed decades ago when the late Chief Khayisa Ndiweni declared in 1981 that his son would succeed him.
The late chief’s spouse, uGogo uMasuku, who passed away two years ago, reportedly wrote in her will, now before the High Court, that she left everything of the Clan Ndiweni under the authority of Felix Nhlanhla Ndiweni.