After going for over a century without representation, Manguba villagers in Bulilima district, Wednesday, cheered on as their new chief was officially installed.
The ceremony attended by government officials, traditional leaders, local villagers and other stakeholders witnessed the installation of Morning Moyo as Chief Manguba of Bulilima.
Moyo previously served as Headman before his elevation to Chief.
Minister of Local Government July Moyo presided over the traditional ceremony held at Phakama High School.
The highlight of the ceremony was the putting on the official regalia by Chief Manguba which consists of a purple and red gown, a white helmet, a golden badge emblazoned with the Zimbabwean Court of Arms and a staff.
Chief Manguba was also handed a copy of the Zimbabwe Constitution and Traditional Leaders Act.
In his first public address, Chief Manguba spoke of the many years of negotiations that took place to have the chieftainship revived.
“The negotiations have been ongoing since 2013 and in 2015, Chief Gampu raised the issue pointing out that we have to be represented at a provincial level,” he said.
The Manguba chieftainship is one of the BaKalanga chieftainships which were dethroned by the colonial regime, which imposed Ndebele chiefs in Bulilima and Mangwe, which are predominantly Kalanga territories.
The other abolished chieftainships include Hikwa of Dombodema, Hingwe, Tjingababili, Habe and many others some of which have been resuscitated by the current government.
Some Kalanga chieftainships which have been revived include, Masendu and Madlambudzi in Bulilima and Hobodo and Tjankuluba (Sangulube) in Mangwe.
The concerns of Bulilima villagers over the years pressed to have their own substantive traditional leader have been that their chief does not sit in the Matabeleland South provincial chiefs’ assembly since he is in Matabeleland North, therefore, rendering them as people without a representative.
These people are finally independent.