AmaXhosa King Mpendulo Zwelonke Sigcawu has died, media reports said on Thursday.
King Sigcawu died during the early hours of Thursday, the king’s uncle Nkosi Xhanti Sigcawu told TimesLive.
The king, 51, was rushed to hospital by ambulance on Wednesday evening in Mthatha, eNCA reported.
News24 has reached out for comment from the Xhosa royal house, and the story will be updated once received.
King Zwelonke Sigcawu had been king of the AmaXhosa since the death of his father, King Xolilizwe Sigcawu, in 2005.
He was sworn in as king of the amaXhosa nation in Nqadu Great Place in the Eastern Cape in 2015, the first coronation of an amaXhosa king in 50 years, News previously reported.
The event was attended by around 10 000 people, including then President Jacob Zuma, high profile guests and representatives from Britain, Somalia, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Indonesia, Botswana, Libya and Zimbabwe, as well as all South African kings and queens, representatives from all houses of traditional leaders and Contralesa.
In 2010, he was declared legitimate king of all AmaXhosa by President Jacob Zuma, following a determination by the Commission on Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims, also known as the Nhlapo Commission, which probed the authenticity of traditional leaders in south africa.
