Bukalo
The sleepy village of Bukalo, recently promulgated a village council and which is the tribal headquarters of the Masubia Traditional Authority, was fully charged up on Saturday as thousands of people thronged the palace of Chief Kisco Liswani III to feast and celebrate a rich cultural heritage spanning centuries.
The Masubia are one of the largest ethnic tribes in the Zambezi Region and are mostly found in the eastern floodplains. They are known to be river people with fish and water lilies forming part of their traditional cuisine.
The annual festival that normally draws thousands of people exceeded expectations this year, as roads were completely impassable, prompting the police to direct traffic and further maintain law and order.
Street vendors used the occasion to cash in on the business opportunities that opened up on the day. Guests from neighbouring countries such as Zambia and Botswana where the Masubia tribe are also found were present during the festivities as well. Chief Moffat Nkonkwena of the Masubia tribe in Botswana too was present as usual. With Zambezi plagued by tribalism, a sense of unity in diversity seemed to prevail as hundreds of subjects of other ethnic tribes too graced the occasion. A representative of the Mashi Traditional Authority, Natamoyo Fredrick Kabala and a representative of the Mayeyi khuta also attended.
A Mayeyi traditional group showcased their famous shiboli dance much to the amusement of the Masubia people who are mostly fixated on their peacock-inspired traditional dance of sipelu that was in abundance at the festival.
There was even a school choir from Sikosinyana Secondary School that falls under the jurisdiction of Chief George Simasiku Mamili of the Mafwe tribe that serenaded the ecstatic and jubilant crowd, hailing Chief Liswani III in glowing terms, a rare occurrence in the tribally volatile region.
Zambezi Regional Governor Lawrence Sampofu, who called for unity, was in a jovial mood as he led the dance to a song specially produced for the festival and performed by award-winning gospel musician Caroline together with fellow singers DJ Siya and Promise.
Before Natamoyo Morris Muyatwa narrated the lineage of Masubia chiefs dating back to 1652, an artistic recital presented by a Musubia from Botswana that used flowery language to praise Chief Liswani drew ululation from the crowd.
The Masubia have had over 16 chiefs since 1652 and traditional shrines are spread all over countries such as Botswana (Kavimba, Goha and Rakop), Zambia (Sesheke and Naliyele) and Namibia (Ngoma, Luhonono, Kasika and Mahundu).
Pockets of the Masubia are also found in the Victoria Falls and Hwange areas of Zimbabwe.
The Deputy Minister of Urban and Rural Development Sylvia Makogne who spoke at the occasion on behalf of Minister Sophia Shaningwa urged for unity as the catalyst for success and development.
“Despite the diverse nature of our society, we have always identified ourselves as one people and as a result we have achieved unity in diversity, a principle we must nurture all the time. It was with unity that we emerged victorious from the yoke of colonialism,” stated Shaningwa.
Shaningwa further noted that development of the region would only come if there is unity among all its inhabitants.
“Development in Zambezi will be determined by its inhabitants collectively. I thus appeal to all residents of this region to shun all forms of divisive tendencies including tribalism. We must embrace unity. We should see ourselves as one people because that’s what we are,” urged Shaningwa.
The Masubia people’s immense contribution to independence was also acknowledged.
“I would like to acknowledge the immense contribution of the sons and daughters of this traditional authority who courageously rose with other fellow Namibians to liberate our motherland from the yoke of colonialism. We salute the traditional leaders of this community for foresightedness through the trying and better times of our history,” further stated Shaningwa.
She urged the traditional authority to encourage the youth to engage in activities that will propel Namibia’s economy and further advised against social harms of domestic violence and alcohol and drug abuse.
“The traditional authority must encourage our youth to work hard for Namibia to produce its own technical experts to accelerate sustainable development. We must confront the evils of domestic violence and abuse of alcohol and drugs because that’s not our cultural norms and values,” implored Shaningwa.
Chief Liswani III echoed similar sentiments of unity, adding that traditional leaders are the transmission belts of peace.
“It’s only when we are united as leaders of our respective communities that we can expect the same sense of unity among our subjects. I look forward to that in our lifetime, visits to our traditional festivals will be reciprocated among all the four traditional authorities as the slogan of our president says no one should feel left out,” said Chief Liswani III to loud applause and ululation.
The Masubia chief further stated that apart from celebrating the Bwinkuhane Bwetu culture, the festival is a platform to honour Masubias that contributed to Namibia’s liberation struggle. “We also use this occasion to honour our sons and daughters who were among the Namibians who sacrificed their youth to liberate our country from the yoke of colonialism. Some of them sacrificed their lives as foot soldiers and commanders. Some of them came back and are serving the country in various capacities,” stated Chief Liswani III in reference to Masubia struggle heroes, among them the late Brendan Simbwaye, the late Greenwell Matongo and the late Richard Kapelwa Kabajani.
Liswani affirmed his support for the Swapo-led government, announcing that his tribe shares a long history with the liberation movement.
“We are ones of very few traditional authorities that severed ties with the colonial government. As punishment the then repressive government withheld funding from this traditional authority because we stood by the liberation movement Swapo and indeed Swapo stood by us. We received funding directly from Swapo in exile to keep our operations as a traditional authority going. We are thankful for that support,” stressed Chief Liswani III.
With only 15 years left before the deadline of the ambitious development plan of vision 2030, Chief Liswani III used the occasion to appeal for food security and self-reliance stating that inhabitants of the region should be able to produce basic food.
He applauded the community of Muyako who recently grouped themselves into a committee to root out illegal fishing at Lake Liambezi, a hotbed for foreign nationals who use unconventional methods to deplete fishery resources. Liswani further joined the urban land debate by encouraging the youth to exercise caution and restraint as solutions are being found to handle the housing crisis in the country.