The selection and installation of Shangwe chiefs in Gokwe North and South districts of Zimbabwe : an applied ethnomusicological dimension towards violating an indigenous model

Abstract

The article is based on a research that investigated, from an applied ethnomusicological dimension, the manner in which Shangwe indigenes in Gokwe North and South districts of Zimbabwe violated the indigenous model of selecting and installing chiefs. The scramble and fighting for positions of leadership remains an unresolved challenge in this political world. There are well documented sociological studies about fighting for positions of power and possible solutions being proffered to attempt and reduce the social quandary. The ethnographic paradigm was utilised to collect qualitative data through unwritten interviews that were meant to obtain information about causes for fighting for chieftainship. Findings were as follows: There were undocumented succession plans of passing chieftainship from one household to another; fighting for chieftainship could continue even after the incumbency was endorsed by the State; and fighting for chieftaincy is a way of trying to restore the cultural legacy bestowed to households that do not belong to the genealogy of chiefs.