King Lobengula festivities planned
BY OUR STAFF
BULAWAYO ? The City of Kings will come alive with royal festivities once again when Ndebeles converge on Bulawayo to commemorate the disappearance of King Lobengula.
The commemorations are scheduled for 8 December and the venue is yet to be established.
Speaking to Standardplus, a descendant of Lobengula, Prince Zwedi kaLanga Khumalo, said King Lobengula?s commemorations were different from King Mzilikazi?s.
"King Mzilikazi?s commemorations mainly focused on respect and prayer to the ancestors," Zwedi kaLanga said. "We want this commemoration to focus on child education and development. We are planning to have events which focus on developing value systems in young children.
"These celebrations, including the King Mzilikazi commemorations, are very important to the Ndebele people as they never lost the war, because the king was neither killed nor captured during battle."
Lobengula is said to have been furious when he discovered that he had been cheated by Cecil John Rhodes and his business associates. He tried to renounce the agreement he had signed but the British government ignored him.
He then declared war, which was the first uprising by black people against the settlers in the 1890s.
This celebration is set to attract a lot of people, especially members of the Royal Zulu family from KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa and also from the Royal Swazi House in Swaziland.
Also expected to attend this function are prominent people such as historian Pathisa Nyathi, poet Albert Nyathi and the Minister of Information and Publicity, Sikhanyiso Ndlovu among others.
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