Masubia court battle ends in settlement

The Masubia chieftainship court battle has taken a new twist after the applicant, former legal drafter in the justice ministry Gilbert Muhongo Mutwa, and the respondents reached a settlement agreement.The settlement agreement entered into on 19 March indicates that the Masubia Traditional Authority, which previously refused to sign Mutwa’s application form, will now formally acknowledge his application to be designated chief of the Masubia tribe.Zambezi governor Lawrence Sampofu is also compelled to sign Mutwa’s application form, which will be forwarded to the line ministry.According to the court documents filed by Mutwa through his lawyer Ndelitungapo Ndaitwah, he turned to the High Court on 25 January to interdict the coronation of either James Kabati Maiba or Fredrick Nalisa Nalisa as chief of the Masubia tribe.In his founding affidavit, Mutwa argued that neither Nalisa nor Maiba is the rightful heir to the throne, adding that the coronation was being conducted without the blessing of the line ministry.Mutwa also at the time argued that he was being treated unfairly, hence his decision to turn to the court.“The Masubia traditional authority... refused to entertain my application for designation. This refusal, which was unreasonable, irrational, unfair, denuded me of my rights afforded to me by the provisions of section 12 of the Traditional Authorities Act, 2000,” Mutwa’s affidavit further read.The Masubia tribe has been without a chief since the death of the late chief, Kisco Liswani III, who died in July last year due to Covid-19.Maiba favouriteVarious sources indicated that despite Mutwa’s application being considered, Maiba remains the preferred candidate to ascend to the Masubia throne.Muhongo is said to not have connected with the people over the years as he was predominantly based in Windhoek, while Nalisa has a criminal record after he was found guilty of theft in the Katima Magistrate’s Court.He was sentenced to 36 months’ imprisonment in 2020 for stealing bail money from the police station where he worked.kenya@namibiansun.com

Masubia court battle ends in settlement

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Namibian Sun 2026-06-03

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Masubia court battle ends in settlement

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Namibian Sun 2026-06-03

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