Lozi women dance in very dignified manner, observes Munkombwe

Lozi women dance in very dignified manner, observes Munkombwe
By Edwin Mbulo in Livingstone
Mon 22 Mar. 2010, 04:01 CAT

SOUTHERN Province minister Daniel Munkombwe has observed that Lozi women dance in a very dignified manner because their movements are not suggestive or provocative. Officiating at the fundraising dinner dance organised by Kuomboka Kufuluhela Livingstone committee at Rhapsody’s on Saturday, Munkombwe said Lozi women’s dances could not be compared with those that were inductive.

Munkombwe, who joked as a Tonga and, therefore, traditional cousin of the Lozi people, said he was more comfortable to sit with a Lozi than any other person from other tribes.

“As your traditional cousin I have never been comfortable to sit with anybody from other tribes but you because I can denounce you or praise you. I speak Lozi very fluently amukoni ku ni seba you cannot backbite me. Lozi women dance in a very significant manner not suggestive or provocative. Their movements during dance is not inductive, not the way others dance, very provocative and inductive,” Munkombwe said.

“It is very bad, but the way you dance your Siomboka, it is proper, proper, proper! If you embrace a Lozi girl, not the spoilt ones of course, then you are okay.”

He caused laughter when he said he could not go for any woman under the age of 60 since he was over 70 years old.

Munkombwe also remarked that he would have loved to know the “geography” of the master of ceremonies but she was not his type.

“Na nilata bachembele I want old women Mulena a kupi wa ng’wata fela a king does not beg, he just grabs. All people are my relatives regardless of tribe, Bemba or Lozi that is why I handika chilubale, and Lozi fluently, situtu satutuluka, situtu satukuka if you don’t understand that then you are not a Lozi,” he said.

Munkombwe said he was delighted that the Lozi culture and the Kuomboka ceremony had never been diluted or spoiled by modern culture.

He added that this year’s sufficient rains were a blessing to the Lozi people.
“It does not matter whether you are a professor or doctor that is why you put on those Mikanjos Misisi,” Munkombwe said.

Munkombwe pledged K500,000 to the committee.

And Patriotic Front (PF) provincial chairman Josephs Akafumba pledged K1 million to the committee.

“The MMD government under Rupiah Banda is not interested in cultural development let alone national developments and has since turned towards conning traditional leaders to be Rupiah’s image builders. That is why we are now seeing a lot of red cards. MMD is going out next year,” Akafumba said.

Kuomboka Kufuluhela committee chairperson Vincent Katanekwa said each year that passed by, the Kuomboka ceremony grew bigger in terms of attendance and this year’s event would be televised worldwide via satellite.

Katanekwa said the Kufuluhela Kuomboka traditional ceremony organising committee did not get good feedback from residents in the tourist capital.

“This year’s Kuomboka ceremony shall be broadcast worldwide and already they are mounting the interlink satellite system in Mongu for that broadcast, our culture forges ahead. As westerners either Totela or Kwangwa like me we have a duty to meet the requirements of these demands,” he said.

Katanekwa observed that in the olden days the goods and products that were to go on the Nalikwanda royal barge were not bought and donated to the Litunga but were gathered from each district.

And there was laughter during the dinner dance after the audience failed to sing the national anthem in Lozi.