Unpacking the history of kingship succession of Ovambandja

SHIVUTE KAAPANDA



Oral history related to Ovambandja people is an interesting phenomenon, especially when the kingship succession is considered.

Ovambandja/Aambandja are a unique sub-tribe of Aawambo people in the northern Namibia who are known for inhabiting the area called “Okalongo” today.

Given the colonial formation and interpretation of the collection of kingdoms as countries in Africa, the name 'Okalongo' actually means 'a small country/kingdom'; it is a historical fact that African people never lived as countries as colonialists put it, instead they lived as communities in beautiful kingdoms led by Eehamba/Aakwaniilwa as ultimate rulers and symbols of final authorities of such kingdoms. The concept of countries that we are forced to embrace today through the Roman-Dutch law were and are still alien to Africa today.

Before the colonial expansion of white people especially the English people in the area we know as Namibia today and the Portuguese colonialists in the area known as Angola today who are the main agents in the events which saw the invention of colonial borders between Namibia and Angola.

The Aambandja people had two palaces namely 'Ombala yaNaluheke' and 'Ombala yaMhungu'.

Due to colonial expansion of boarders all these respected palaces are today demarcated as Angola today.

It is now obvious that Okalongo and the whole area of southern Angola today including some parts of Ombaanhu kingdom stretching to Oukwanyama kingdom to the land of Kavango people had been delinked from one another not only as part of what we know as southern Angola today but the colonial exercise ensured the division of these kingdoms into two sides of both Angola and Namibia creating serious contradictions in terms of political and economic leadership for these kingdoms.

All these are due to colonial dispossession as we live in a strange and polarized world of colonial boarders in the making.

Oral history has revealed that 'Ombala yaNaluheke' (The palace of Naluheke) was established around 17th century by the 'Aakwanahungi' clan of Ovambandja people led by King Naunyango waNaipuluta.

King Naushona waNanghombo is to whom the Ovambandja are attributed to today as 'Ovambandja vaNaushona', oral History reveal that Ombala yaNaluheke has been so far led by seventeen kings as follows; Ohamba/King Naushona waNghombo was succeeded by King Nedu laHangula followed by King Haha-Haha followed by King Mweengwayengwa followed by King Kalipi kaHashitumbo followed by King Fuma Lekuwa followed by King Moongela waShingeya, it is often a common attribution to Ovambandja females as 'Eenhana daMoongela with reference to King Moongela waShingeya.

King Moongela was followed by King Hohwela, followed by King Namnuka, followed by King Naunyango waNaipuluta followed by King Nambinga yaShihwa who was then followed by controversial King Haikela yaNamanyungu( a street was named after him in Outapi town of Ombaanhu Kingdom),King Haikela yaNamanyungu was succeeded by King Shekudja shaHamukangu followed by King Shahula shaHamadila followed by King Vaefeni yaNdjebela followed by King Shikongo shaMutumbulwa who was succeeded by King Justino Kambungo kaMweulinale.

Oral history from recent generations reveals that King Nambiya yaShihwa unlawfully took over the palace after the death of King Naunyango waNaipuluta at Ekuni this created anger between King Nambiya's half-brother Haikela yaNamanyungu and Nambiya himself because it was already planned that Haikela would succeed King Naunyango waNaipuluta. Haikela organize and strategise a coup to overthrow his brother Nambiya and succeeded to take over the throne by killing his brother.

It was during King Haikela's reign when the Portuguese firstly attacked Ombandja Kingdom via 'Ondobe yOfinge' in 1891. King Haikela yaNamanyungu led Ovambandja via Ombala yaNaluheke for a longer period of time, oral history remind us that he had his grand-children whom he instructed to take care of the whole kingdom during his older days as a ruler when he could no longer reach out due to his old age condition, such grand-children's included; Mutukulwa waHauwanga ,Shekundja Hamakunde and Shuudeni shaShinana. King Haikela died in the year 1895.

It is narrated that Shekundja shaHamakunde succeed his grandfather King Haikela but his reign only lasted for few months before he encountered a psychiatric disorder which led him to commit suicide by burning himself in a hut.

King Shekundja was then replaced by King Shahula shaHamadila in 1896 during whose reign Ombandja Kingdom encountered the second wave of the historic war with the Portuguese which he claimed ultimate victory at 'Evelo laPembe' on 25 September 1904 and at 'Omwandi wEendadi' which led to the collapse of the whole Kingdom of Ombandja.

It is alleged that the Portuguese expansion war in what we call Angola today was responsible for dissolving and dispossession of the Ombandja Kingdom which expanded the borders further into what we call Namibia today. The result and signatures of polarization we see Ovambandja, Aambaanhu and Aakwanyama in both Namibia and Angola today were entrenched by Portuguese and German colonialists.

After the death of King Shahula shaHamadila there was conflicts over the succession of Ombala yaNaluheke and later on King Vaefeni yaNdjebela was installed by the Aakwanahungi clan at the end of the year estimated 1914 but his reign only lasted for a month before he was overthrown by the Portuguese forces, he was succeeded by King Shikongo shaMutumbulwa whose ultimate death was recorded around 1954, King Shikongo was succeeded by the 17th King of Ombandja Kingdom Justino Kambungo kaMweulinale who died on 23 September 2005.

The Ovambandja history of colonial struggle has been highly ignored by the current government as it did not form part of the written school curriculum of the Namibian history.



* Shivute Kaapanda is a Pan-African writer, a columnist and an author of a book titled 'The Conscious Republic'. He is from Eyanda village, Omusati Region. [email protected]