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. MYSTERY ABOUT THE UNCOMMON NAME SILE IN BAROTSELAND ... contd.
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After the death of Sebitwane in 1851, her daughter Mamuchisane ascended to the throne but her rule was strongly resented by most senior Kololo loyalists. The opposition emanated from Mamochisane's marriage prospects to a Lui prince Sipopa Lutangu who was brought up from Sebitwane's palace after the defeat of the Lui.
Sebitwane kept and treated all Lui princes and princesses well and ordered that they continue enjoying the respect they enjoyed during Lui rule.
It was during Sipopa's stay in Sebitwane's palace that he fell in love with Mamuchisane Sebitwane's daughter. Unfortunately before the marriage could be formalised, Sebitwane died of a spine injury sustained from a fall from Dr. David Livingstone's horse.
As the resentment over her affair with prince Sipopa heightened, Mamuchisane decided to let go off the chieftaincy and marry the love of her life-prince Sipopa without interference from the indunas.
Mamuchisane was in favour of handing over the chieftaincy to prince Sile her first cousin because he was more mature, soft spoken and had been a close aid to Sebitwane her father. But some indunas advised her that such a move would bring some rivalry between her two brothers Sile and Sekeletu as the later was rude, arrogant and violent.
The chieftaincy was handed over to Sekeletu for the purpose of preserving peace and unity.
By 1862, Sekeletu had become so weakened owing to leprosy. He had started seeking healing from traditional doctors who gave him different superstition theories of witchcraft.
Prince Sipopa who had grown up and known Sekeletu as a highly superstitious young man now came up with a killer strategy that weakened the Kololo the furthest.
This time Sipopa was in Nyengo area . He would organize bundles of dried game meat, reeds (Kuma) for reed mats and other forms of tribute.
He then would travel to Linyanti to pay the tributes to Sekeletu and during the visits he would whisper to Sekeletu that his ailment is as a result of witchcraft spells from a group of Kololo men.
After Sipopa's departure, Sekeletu would order the killing of all those Kololos Sipopa had mentioned!
This slander against the Kololos went on each time Sipopa would visit Sekeletu with tributes .Unknowingly, Sekeletu succeeded in having almost all Kololo warriors killed leaving only the aged and the youths who have never seen battle!
Convinced that all Kololo war veterans have been killed, Sipopa now waged a silent campaign amongst all the non Kololo men like the ndebeles, Shona, Tokas, etc that were captured as slaves by the Kololos on their way from Basotholand to Bulozi. Sipopa convinced them that Kololos are not their relatives but enemies who forced them to leave their fathers, mother's and wives and that time has now come for them to avenge and free themselves. Eventually all these men agreed to join hands with the Lui to fight the already weakened Kololos.
Among the non Kololo foreigners was a ndebele by the name of Matole who after being captured in Matebeleland was given as chief steward to prince Sile.
When Sipopa's fighters invaded Nasiyongo -Sile' capital, Matole who by then was now fighting on the side of the Lui ran to Sile's house, grabbed Sile's wife Mukabo who had just been delivered of twin babies a girl and a boy. When the babies were born, Sile gave the babies incidental names- names according to prevailing incidences. The girl was named "Abufeli" meaning buhata bobasweli kuisanga malozi ku Sekeletu bobutisa lipulao za makololo Abufeli!
He named the boy "Mubualifi" translated as "mubulela likamani" a question to the Lui over what they always report to Sekeletu that leads to Kololo notable men killed each time the Lui visit Sekeletu!
Since Matole was promised amnesty if he fights on the side of the Lui, he lied to the Lui when they approached his home that that he has two wives one of whom has just been delivered of twin babies!
Thus he saved his master's wife and the twin babies.
Sile was killed that July night of 1864 and Matole now married his master's wife and adopted the children.
The girl Abufeli is the mother to my grandmother (Dad's mother!)
