Between tradition and modernity: discourses on the coronation of the Ndebele “King” in Zimbabwe

In March 2018, the Bulawayo High Court ruled against the installation of an Ndebele King in Zimbabwe. The Ndebele throne was left vacant when the second and last king, Lobengula Khumalo, disappeared in 1893 during the armed struggle against the British imperial forces. Prince Bulelani Lobengula Khumalo, the heir apparent to the throne, was supposed to be crowned as the Ndebele King on 3 March 2018 at Barboufields Stadium in Bulawayo. However, the Court declared the installation unconstitutional, and the police blocked the coronation ceremony. Drawing upon decoloniality and Mamdani’s citizen and subject as theoretical lens, and on critical discourse analysis, this article examines the online discourses that emerged on the Chronicle and Bulawayo24.com news websites. It is concluded that these Ndebele kingship debates are contributing to various understandings on ethnicity, nationhood and citizenship. Moreover, decolonial sentiments are evoked as online discussants justify the installation of an Ndebele king.