WOMAN’S BODY IN MORGUE FOR YEAR

MAHLANYA – This is obviously unfair to the deceased.

Eswatini News has learnt that a dispute between brothers Gabi and Mduduzi Mndzebele over the ideal burial site of their mother has led to her lifeless body remaining in the morgue for over a year. Busisiwe Macwele, their mother, passed away on February 16, 2024 and has been kept at Dups Funeral Home in Manzini since then.

She was the wife of the late former Liqoqo member, Joseph Mndzebele, who served on the advisory council alongside figures including the late Prince Mfanasibili. Busisiwe had three children with Joseph—Nondumiso, Mduduzi and Gabi. One of their brothers, Khalemphini, stated that they have 35 other siblings, as their father had five official wives: LaNkhosi, LaFakudze, LaZwane, LaShongwe, and LaDlamini. He lamented that most siblings have sided with Mduduzi in this burial dispute.

Gabi and Mduduzi, who share the same mother, are at odds over where she should be laid to rest. Although Busisiwe was not officially married to Joseph, she resided at Mduduzi’s home in Mahlanya. The land on which his home was built was granted to him by their father.

Gabi contends that the home belonged to their late mother and insists that Busisiwe should be buried within its premises. However, an April 2024 ruling determined that she should be buried at Kontjingila, her parental home.
The case remains unresolved, as Gabi has filed an appeal with the Supreme Court.

Comment

“As it stands, between my brother and I , neither can claim ownership of the homestead. I cannot comment further on my mother’s matter, as it is pending in court. It is painful that my brother does not want my mother to be buried at her home,” Gabi stated. Mduduzi declined to comment when approached to get his side of the story. The burial dispute is just one of many conflicts surrounding the Mndzebele family, following the death of Joseph, a wealthy businessman.

When Joseph died in November 2007, he left four of his five wives and over 30 children in distress by designating only one son as the sole heir to his multimillion-Emalangeni estate. The estate consists of two plots in Manzini, two shops at Lobamba Lomdzala, two Mercedes-Benz vehicles, two Toyota vans, two tractors and other assets. All these were granted to his son, Makhosahlangene Makhalane Mndzebele, as the sole heir according to a will drafted in 1998.

The will’s validity was tested in court. Initially drafted in 1993, it was subsequently amended in 1998 to include one of the wives whom Joseph had married after the original document was written. This information was revealed by the late businessman’s sons, Mbuso and Gabi Mndzebele, when they appeared before the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into the operations of the Master’s Office in April last year, as reported by the Times of Eswatini, our sister publication.

The two brothers are also related to Zimbabwe-based Human Rights lawyer Beatrice Mtetwa, the Board Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights. They disclosed that at one point, they sought her legal opinion due to her expertise in the field. Gabi previously told the commission that it was astonishing and shocking that their father, who had always provided equally for his wives, could have left them with nothing upon his passing.

He described his father as a humble man, who sought to resolve conflicts amicably. “It is for this reason that we were left in disbelief upon learning that my father’s will did not distribute his estate fairly among his wives, but instead left everything to a sole heir. This was not reflective of the man he was,” he stated at the time.

Gabi further argued that the will contradicted the Constitution, which had come into effect before Joseph’s death and provided for fair distribution of an estate among surviving spouses. He referenced Section 34 of the Constitution, which stipulates that a surviving spouse is entitled to a reasonable provision from the estate, regardless of whether a will exists or whether the marriage was formalised under civil or customary law.

Relief

According to Gabi, except for the mother of the sole heir, the other wives have struggled financially since Joseph’s passing. He revealed that at times, he and his siblings have had to provide financial relief to them due to their difficulties.

Assistant Master at the Manzini Office, Ziphozonke Fakudze, confirmed the existence of the will, which bequeathed all the deceased’s belongings to his son and appointed one of the surviving wives, Siphiwe Patricia. Fakudze revealed that valuation reports of the properties had been submitted and that legal challenges had arisen. On May 8, 2014, the Master’s Office received a notice of motion filed by Phuzukuvela Mndzebele, seeking the removal of the executor due to delays in winding up the estate, which had remained unsettled for seven years.

On December 15, 2014, another legal challenge was filed by one of the wives, Reginah Mndzebele, through Mbuso Simelane Attorneys. This application sought to have the will declared null and void, arguing that it violated Sections 21(4) and 34 of the Constitution.

Section 21(4) grants the right to receive a record of court proceedings within a reasonable time after judgment. The challengers also sought to have Section 125 of the Administration Act declared unconstitutional, arguing that it violated Sections 21 and 34 of the Constitution.

Additionally, the application called for the fourth respondent—the sole heir—to be restrained from collecting rent from Makhomba Supermarket, one of the deceased’s businesses. Fakudze confirmed that, as far as the Master’s Office was concerned, these matters remained pending in court. However, the Mndzebele brothers later stated that the disputes had been resolved in court and were no longer active cases.

Upon questioning the validity of the will, the commission advised the Mndzebele brothers to challenge the matter legally, with the commission’s chair, Judge Majahenkhaba Dlamini, stating that they had a strong case. He pointed out that the will became effective only upon Joseph’s death, which occurred after the Constitution had come into force in 2005.

The ongoing burial dispute highlights broader cultural attitudes towards death and inheritance. In a series of viewpoints from African journalists published by the BBC, Ghanaian writer Elizabeth Ohene wrote about her country’s deep-rooted customs surrounding death. In her piece, Ohene reflected on Ghana’s funeral culture, noting,
“We love funerals here and they are a veritable spectacle better experienced than described. The attitude towards the dead and funerals would seem to indicate that a dead Ghanaian is worth far more than a live one.”

She described how, in some cases, families struggle to pay hospital bills for living relatives, but readily mobilise resources for elaborate funerals once they pass away.

Similar

The Mndzebele family’s ongoing conflicts over burial and inheritance highlight similar complexities in how death is perceived and handled in different cultural contexts. Mzikayise Ntshangase of Mkhwakhweni in the Shiselweni Region remained unburied for five years until Judge Qinisile Mabuza issued a judgment authorising his burial. He could not be buried at Mkhwakhweni because there were claims that he had been evicted from the area. The agonising delay in burying Ntshangase subjected his two widows to a five-year long official mourning period.

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