By Sihle Mavuso
The four members of the Ingonyama Trust Board (ITB) who were left in office by the time the board was disbanded have taken the matter to the Pietermaritzburg High Court for an urgent review.
They asked the court to hear the matter on Wednesday, citing irreparable harm if there were delays.
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The members, Inkosi Sibonelo Mkhize, Advocate Linda Zama, Inkosi Phalang Molefe and property practitioner Nomusa Zulu, said the decision by Minister Mzwanele Nyhontso of the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development should be declared unlawful, irrational, and suspended, as he had misinterpreted the Ingonyama Act in taking the decision.
Cited as respondents, among others, were King Misizulu, the sole trustee of the Ingonyama Trust, and KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli.
Both the Zulu King and Ntuli were consulted by Nyhontso and agreed with his assertion that the board had virtually collapsed and was unable to carry out its duties, and should therefore be disbanded.
The main affidavit was filed by Siyamdumisa Vilakazi, the acting chief executive officer of the Trust.
Despite Misuzulu saying he did not recognise Vilakazi because his appointment was unlawful, the acting chief executive officer told the court that he was duly authorised to depose to the main affidavit.
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“The relief is urgently required to enable the ITB to approve its 2026-2027 budget which it is scheduled to do on Wednesday, 25 March 2026. If [the] budget is not approved in that meeting scheduled for that day, such approval is unlikely to be obtained by 31 March 2026, which is the last day for the financial year.
“If the budget is approved by then, the ITB and the Trust will not be able, in terms of the KZNITA (KZN Ingonyama Trust Act) and the PFMA (Public Finance Management Act), to lawfully access and use public monies including monies of the Trust. This will threaten the existence and operations of the Trust,” Vilakazi said in his affidavit.
Other than that, Vilakazi said the “unlawful” disbanding of the board would hamper the approval of the 2024-2025 annual report, which was due by 15 April 2026.
Vilakazi also asked the court to suspend Misuzulu’s decision to revoke his (Vilakazi’s) and Zulu’s powers to sign for money at FNB.
Vilakazi said the king appeared to believe that the board was part of the Zulu monarch and that the assets of the trust were “personal property.”
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He said those assertions were displayed by the king in the case brought by Prince Mbonisi Zulu, who wanted to interdict him from accessing the funds of the Trust until the issue of succession was settled.
Meanwhile, the staff salaries at the Trust, which were due on Wednesday morning, had not been paid at the time of publication.
Several sources at the Trust told Inside Politics that they usually received their salaries just after midnight; however, this time around that had not happened.
The delayed salaries were believed to be linked to a letter Misuzulu wrote to FNB changing signatories.
The spokesperson for the Trust, Simphiwe Mxakaza, said it was too early to say salaries had not been paid.
“Kindly note that today, 25 March 2026, is the official payday for the staff of Ingonyama Trust, and the day has not yet lapsed in terms of their employment contracts. At this stage, it would be premature to conclude that staff have not been paid, as there are still several hours remaining within the agreed payment window.
“It is important to consider that salary payments may still be processed within the remaining time. Should the salaries be transferred within the next few minutes, any prior conclusion suggesting non-payment would be inaccurate,” he said.