Chief Mutondo of the Nkoya speaking people in Kaoma district has threatened that there will be bloodshed if government will fund the expansion of Naliele royal palace of the Barotse Royal Establishment claiming that the palace is squatting illegally in his chiefdom.
He said the Naliele “Palace” was established in 1936 as a village for the native authority.
Chief Mutondo was speaking in Nkoya language through his interpreter, the former Ambassador to Malaysia under the Chiluba administration, Crispin Shumina when Western provincial Minister Obvious Mwaliteta paid a courtesy call on him today.
He said Naliele palace was occupied by a prince and not a chief and wondered why today the prince has become a Senior chief of the district in his chiefdom and complained that this is what is causing problems in Kaoma.
Chief Mutondo accused the Barotse Royal Establishment (BRE) of suppressing other tribes to which he said he cannot succumb.
Although on the other hand, he claimed that Nkoya speaking people want peace, he maintained that Naliele palace should be removed from Kaoma in order to maintain what he called harmony in the district.
In response, Mr Mwaliteta appealed to Chief Mutondo to embrace dialogue through the already established government structures and channels.
“It is not the issue of shedding blood but dialogue so that an amicable solution is attained through all peaceful means”, emphasized Mr Mwaliteta.
He assured Chief Mutondo that he has carried the message to the Ministry of Chiefs and Traditional Affairs who have the mandate to handle such important matters.
Mr Mwaliteta explained that it was not government policy of interfering with the traditional matters and that if chiefs want to appoint representatives in the councils they were free to do so.
Speaking at the same meeting, Induna Kalubi Mwanamute appealed to government to scrutinize the jurisdictions of each individual chief in Kaoma district in order to address the differences between Chiefs Mutondo and Senior chief Amukena of Naliele royal palace.
Induna Mwanamute said that each chief through a statutory Instrument (SI) provided by government has his area of jurisdiction clearly indicated.
ZANIS
This Mutondo chief must be sick because oit is very clear that Naliele existed a long time as a chiefdom. Wjhy does he want it moved? To where? Lack of education!
Mpanike ka dembe ni chapu yami! Kalui walitemba weya akaka. This chief should just concentrate on Kazanga uwahe and not on the palace the gvt intends to build. Malabishi.
This is good news in that Now the Western province shall have all its people groups represented equally.
And who are ALL the People you are talking about? Elaborate please! You know fcuk all about the people of Western Province. Please concentrate on issues that pertain to the area where you come from. We just have too many graduates from Matero University masquerading as Experts on Barotse history.
Only if the BRE was an agreement between God and the Zambians, it will be recognised. If it was between UK administration and a supposedly Lozi king , then forget. Lozis are a minority tribe who don’t even make up 16% of the Zambian tribe population. Let us just live as one. There is no barotse agr.The , then king was just given a mirror to see his face and foolishly agreed to all what the imperialists told him. I like the all the 73 tribes of Zambia but not this thing called bre. We have inter married. My wife is Lozi and have children with her. BRE think again.
The Naliele Royal establishment was set up way before 1936 and in those days Mutondo was protected by the Naliele Royal establishment from incursions coming mainly from portuguese slave traders and later from the bondage of the Kololo who had conquered both the Luyi and the Nkoya.
This was way back in 1836.
Mwene Mutondo should know that there is no tribe called Lozi or Bemba as these are mixed ethnic groupings which include the Mankoya.
King Mutondo is right that Lozi person posing as a chief in Kaoma is illegal therefore the so called palace should be abolished.
@ Donqueen The Kololo did not conquer to Nkoyas at all. ln fact it is the Nkoya chiefs who gave shelter to some Lozi chiefs against the Kololo.
Dont try to justify greediness from the BRE.
The PF government must be fair otherwise they will be blamed if war breaks out in that part of our country.