Our Chief

It is with great regret that I announce the passing of Chief Msibi, who locally governed the immediate area including our property at the mine. I of course knew very little about the local Chief, but two of my co-workers had close family relations with him so the past couple days at work have been more somber than usual. When I was driving back from town yesterday, my truck reached the summit of a small hill in the dirt road to reveal a parade of hundreds of local Zulus marching along the road in remembrance of Chief Msibi. I pulled off to the side of the road and witnessed the crowd slowly pass, some holding hands, others looking down at the dirt. It was quite moving to see the entire community together there respecting their dear Chief who I'm told has ruled this land for over 20 years.

It will be interesting to see in the near future what sort of ceremonies there will be for the funeral. Funerals are enormously important to the Zulu community here. In the small town of Piet Retief alone I've counted three funeral homes. For someone so well-respected, I expect there will be an extraordinary ceremony put together for the Chief. And from the brief accounts I have been given from one of his family members, he definitely deserves it. R.I.P. Chief Msibi.