Demise or resilience? Customary law and chieftaincy in twenty-first century Botswana

Morapedi, Wazha G.

doi:10.1080/02589001003736843

Cited by 12 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…The stark reality, however, is that the chieftaincy institution has resiliently shown remarkable revival in various forms, a revival whose motivations have not eluded scholarly attention (Nyamnjoh 2003;Morapedi 2010;Trotha 1996;Amusa and Ofuafor 2012). The first, and probably the most outstanding, is the abysmal performance of many states in Africa À which is characterized by their inability to be in touch with their societies and by the obvious absence of government in terms of programs and social amenities À that has delegitimized these states and rekindled people's attachment to their traditional political culture (Skinner 1998;Osaghae 1999;Cheka 2008;Morapedi 2010). Second, Asaju (2005) has also drawn attention to the institution's contemporary widening of its scope of inclusion through the post-colonial de-paganization of the institution, which has enthusiastically brought even the clergy of both Christianity and Islam into its folds of candidature and support.…”

Section: The African States and Their Kingdoms: Theoretical Contemplamentioning

confidence: 97%

Beneath politicization: the unacknowledged constitutional crisis in the Dagbon succession conflict in Ghana

Bolaji

2016

The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law

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The Dagbon succession conflict has been intermittent since the colonial era. What appears to be the most trumpeted thesis in the scholarly works that the conflict has attracted is the overpoliticization of the conflict. While the over-politicization of the conflict is indisputable, this study uncovers the constitutional crisis, which is beneath and motivates the over-politicization of the conflict. Through a critical content analysis of archival and historical documents (commission reports, letters, petitions, minutes, and court rulings, among others), and through secondary data from books, journal articles, and newspapers (both print and electronic), the paper identifies and explores three principal sources of the constitutional crisis, namely, the inadequacy of the 1930 Dagomba Succession Constitution, the lack of legitimacy for the 1948 Amended Dagomba Succession Constitution, and the state's interventions that have deepened the constitutional crisis. Having explained how legal centralism and legal pluralism have been implicated in the conflict, the paper concludes with a dispassionate call for a transformation of the conflict that will acknowledge the constitutional character of the conflict and the need to convene a constitutional conference in which the two royal gates would harmonize their emic perspectives on their succession customs and rules.

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Section: The African States and Their Kingdoms: Theoretical Contemplamentioning

confidence: 97%

Beneath politicization: the unacknowledged constitutional crisis in the Dagbon succession conflict in Ghana

Bolaji

2016

The Journal of Legal Pluralism and Unofficial Law

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“…He is a symbol of tribal unity, the central figure around which the tribal life revolves’ (Schapera, 1938: 62). The BDP-led government has drastically reduced the powers of chiefs basing this on ‘modernisation’, ‘nation-building’ and ‘democratisation’ (Gillett, 1973; Morapedi, 2005, 2010; Sekgoma, 1994). The Bogosi Act defines a kgosi (chief) as an individual who:(a) possesses such minimum educational qualifications as may be prescribed from time to time; (b) has been designated as Kgosi under section 6; and (c) is recognised as a Kgosi by the Minister in accordance with the provisions of sections 6 and 21 (Republic of Botswana, 2008b: section 4).…”

Section: Chieftainship (Bogosi) In Botswana Since 1966mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Chiefs are ex-officio members of the VDCs and District Development Committee, but ordinary members of the Land Boards since 1994. Some opine that it is upon chiefs to blend well with government institutions (Morapedi, 2010; Sekgoma, 1994), or else, it seems, the ‘central government will not hesitate to displace them’ (Ifezue, 2015: 292).…”

Section: Chieftainship (Bogosi) In Botswana Since 1966mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…He is a symbol of tribal unity, the central figure around which the tribal life revolves' (Schapera, 1938: 62). The BDP-led government has drastically reduced the powers of chiefs basing this on 'modernisation', 'nation-building' and 'democratisation' (Gillett, 1973;Morapedi, 2005Morapedi, , 2010Sekgoma, 1994). The Bogosi Act defines a kgosi (chief) as an individual who:…”

Section: Chieftainship (Bogosi) In Botswana Since 1966mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Contrary to this, Bauer posits that ‘in some democratising African countries they may be viewed as one half of a viable and effective hybrid system at the local level’ (2016: 222–223). In Botswana’s context, divergent views have also been expressed about the significance and role of chiefs (Bauer, 2016; Ifezue, 2015; Morapedi, 2010; Sekgoma, 1994; Vaughan, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Chiefs and the Politics of Land Reform in the North East District, Botswana, 2005–2008

Manatsha

2019

Journal of Asian and African Studies

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The North East District has the most contentious land question in post-colonial Botswana. Most of its land was expropriated by a colonial syndicate called the Tati Concessions (Tati Company) in the 1880s. Chunks of said land are still held under freehold titles resulting in the district experiencing severe land scarcity, especially for communal use. In a continuous effort to address this problem, the government purchased 19 freehold farms between 2005 and 2008 (about 20000 hectares) for redistribution. The process was carried out under the leadership of the Tati Land Board and North East District Administration while the chiefs and their communities were marginalised. This oversight and marginalisation of traditional leaders and their communities undermine the Chieftainship Act, which mandates the chiefs to actively promote the welfare of their tribes, inform them about developments and government policies. Using the participatory democracy theory, the article examines this land reform from the point of view of the local chiefs. It concludes that the marginalisation of the chiefs amounted to ‘community exclusion’ rendering the reform anti-redistributive.

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Dissonance in customary and statutory water management institutions: issues of cultural diversity in the management of water resources in the Okavango Delta, Botswana

Gondo

Kolawole

Mbaiwa

2018

Environ Dev Sustain

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Demise or resilience? Customary law and chieftaincy in twenty-first century Botswana

Cited by 12 publications

References 6 publications

Beneath politicization: the unacknowledged constitutional crisis in the Dagbon succession conflict in Ghana

Beneath politicization: the unacknowledged constitutional crisis in the Dagbon succession conflict in Ghana

Chiefs and the Politics of Land Reform in the North East District, Botswana, 2005–2008

Dissonance in customary and statutory water management institutions: issues of cultural diversity in the management of water resources in the Okavango Delta, Botswana

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