King Thulare Victor Thulare III, the King of the Bapedi nation, passed away at the age of 40. As King, he worked to unite the Bapedi people and champion socioeconomic development projects. He had a vision of transforming the Bapedi nation through beneficiation of resources and industrialization. The funeral service will be held on January 17th to honor his legacy and vision for his people.

1. SPECIAL OFFICIAL FUNERAL SERVICE FOR
24 December 1980 – 6 January 2021
His Majesty King Thulare Victor ThulareIII
Sunday, 17 January 2021

2. Obituary of His Majesty
King Thulare Victor ThulareIII
His Majesty King Thulare Victor Thulare III (Bauba ’a Hlabirwa) was born on
24 December 1980 at Maandagshoek Hospital in Limpopo. He was the son
of the late King Sekhukhune III Thulare and Queen Mother Manyaku Thulare
(Hlapogadi ’a Phaahle).
His Majesty the King grew up at Magadimane Ntweng, Magakala tribe under the
leadership of his late uncle Kgoši Legadimane Ntwampe.
Education
King Thulare III attended Diphala Primary School at Magakala Ntwampe village
and matriculated at Promax College in Johannesburg. He attained his tertiary
qualification in Arts (Graphic Design) at the Central Johannesburg College.
Kingship
Following the death of his father, King Sekhukhune III, in 2007, His Majesty
was called to assume the responsibilities of the King of Bapedi nation at the
tender age of 27. He continued with his father’s battle to restore the throne of
the Bapedi nation under the House of Thulare. The Nhlapo Commission on
Traditional Leadership Disputes and Claims, and later the Constitutional Court
of South Africa, confirmed that the Kingship of Bapedi resorted under the House
of Thulare and that His Majesty King Thulare III was the rightful King of Bapedi
nation.
When he came of age, he passed through the Bapedi rites of passage from
boyhood to manhood and after graduating, he was conferred with a salutation
name of Bauba! This is the praise name for his namesake and predecessor in
the lineage of the Kingship of Bapedi.

3. When he finally ascended the throne of Bapedi nation, he rallied all role players
in his kingdom and even extended an olive branch to his uncle, then Acting King
Kenneth Kgaudi Sekhukhune III, who had challenged the findings of the Nhlapo
Commission. By ending their rivalry, he displayed his gallantry, the love for his
people, and his talent and skills as an efficient and meticulous leader in pursuit
of building a strong Bapedi nation.
Socio-economic development
King Thulare III had a constructive approach in his engagements, and was a
fearless yet noble figure in spirit and posture. He was committed to championing
the economic development of his people, particularly youth and women.
In the interest of promoting the culture of Bapedi nation, His Majesty endorsed
the establishment of Royal Bopedi TV, a platform for profiling the third largest
nation in the country with a population of about five million people inhabiting the
provinces of Limpopo (predominantly), Mpumalanga, North West and Gauteng.
Through the King Thulare III Foundation, King Thulare III invested his personal
resources in community development in areas such as sports, where he
adopted an indigenous sport invented in his kingdom – Tups Sport. He was also
passionate about education and indigenous resources of Bapedi nation such as
the preservation of fauna and flora, hence he adopted the Yellow Arum Lily of
Mohlake valley in the summit of Leolo Mountain as the Bapedi Ancestral Flower.
In addition to identifying poor infrastructure as a threat to the sustainable
socio-economic development of the Bapedi nation, His Majesty had also
identified opportunities in the nation’s abundant mining resources, especially
platinum group metals, agro-processing and tourism.
He had a vision of transforming the Bapedi nation into an industrialised region
anchored on beneficiation of its rich natural resources. This could be driven
through the establishment of industrial development zones (IDZs) located in
various municipal regions such as the Greater Tubatse Municipality (GTM) IDZ.
King Thulare III hosted several high-level discussions on the GTM IDZ. This
project aimed to serve as a catalyst for a hydro-economy in Sekhukhune by
ensuring that Lepelle Northern Water intensified the accessibility of water to the
communities within the kingdom.

4. At the time of his death, King Thulare III had commissioned the development
of a masterplan to integrate socio-economic development in the Bapedi nation,
which is envisaged to dovetail with the District Development Model being
championed by the South African Government.
The masterplan had identified various sectors, clusters, investment opportunities
and value-added products to be targeted as part of steering the Bapedi nation
from an economy based on primary production to one based on strategic
resource beneficiation and ultimate industrialisation.
The King did not want his nation to focus its future on depleting mineral
resources and had envisaged the development of a Smart City, similar to Dubai,
in Sekhukhune. It is unfortunate that he passed on at a time when Phase 1 of
the implementation of the masterplan was scheduled to kick-off in February
2021.
At the time of his passing, His Majesty was in the process of signing a
Memorandum of Understanding with the Tshwane University of Technology for
the setting up of a satellite campus in Sekhukhune, with an orientation towards
skills development and research in mining and agriculture.
Unity of Bapedi nation
During his short reign as King of Bapedi, His Majesty demonstrated the
commitment to build a strong Bapedi nation by uniting all traditional leaders into
an agenda-setting compact. To this effect he appointed a law firm to develop the
Kingship’s governance policies and a Code of Conduct for Traditional Leaders,
including a disputes resolution framework.
At the core of this vision to make ‘a real difference’ in the lives of the Bapedi
nation, was the need to unite all people belonging to the Bapedi nation. This
included forging unity with the disparate Bapedi traditional leaders and headmen
to develop a corporate structure, the Royal Bapedi Holdings, that would bring
on board all Bapedi people and their traditional leaders and headmen or royal
houses.
The structure – which has already been shared with critical stakeholders such
as Anglo-American, Implats and Glencore – was intended to serve as a catalyst
to integrate all socio-economic development projects Sekhukhune.

5. The Year of the Royal Necklace
The year 2021 was predestined to be his year of coronation. The year also marks
the 160th anniversary of the death of King Sekwati I in 1861 – the father of King
Sekhukhune I, by extension the beginning of the reign of King Sekhukhune I.
King Thulare III had earlier earmarked the year 2021 as Ngwaga wa Pheta ya
Thaga (The Year of the Royal Necklace) owing to the necklace as the signifier of
the historic anniversary of the rise of his legendary patriarch, King Sekhukhune I.
The Bapedi nation has undoubtedly lost a visionary and pragmatic monarch
whose vision was to make a real difference in the socio-economic conditions of
his people. However, it is equally remarkable that he had developed blueprints
of his vision, strategies and masterplan for his people to follow.
It is important that the Bapedi nation unite and ensure that the good work that
King Thulare III had initiated for them is carried to completion. This would be a
befitting honour to his legacy.
King Thulare III leaves an impeccable legacy of promoting education, indigenous
knowledge, cultural diplomacy and rebuilding a united Bapedi nation.
He is survived by his Queen Mother, wives, uncles, aunts, siblings and children.
Robala ka Khutšo Bauba ’a Hlabirwa!

6. Programme
PART ONE
Family Valedictory Service at Home
The Royal House: Kingdom of Bapedi Nation
08:00 Family Prayer
PART TWO
Funeral Service at the Royal House: Kingdom of Bapedi Nation
Programme directors: MEC Namane Dickson Masemola and Executive
Mayor Stanley Ramaila (Phogole ’a Marumo)
09:00 National Anthem
09:05 Opening Prayer by His Grace Comforter: Reverend Kgoši Phuti Matlala
09:10 Welcome remarks by the Acting Premier: MEC Basikopo Makamu
09:15 Welcome remarks on behalf of Royal Family: Sekwati Thulare
(Phaahla ’a Bauba)
09:20 Reading of obituary: Voice-over
09:25 Tribute (History of Bapedi Kingdom) by Moruthane Sekhukhune
(Ngwato ’a Ngwato)
09:35 Tribute by Royal Family Representative: Prince Phatudi Thulare
(Hlabirwa ’a Hlabirwa)
09:40 Musical item
09:45 Tribute by His Majesty’s Intergovernmental Relations Advisor:
Groovin Sehlophe Nchabeleng (Nape ’a Marumo)

7. 09:50 Tribute by Representative of Magoši of Bopedi: Kgoši Nkwane Malekane
(Napyane ’a Bauba)
09:55 Tribute by Amandebele Kingdom: His Majesty Ngwenyama Makhosonke
Mabhena II
10:00 Tribute by Chairperson of the National House of Traditional Leaders:
Inkosi Sipho Mahlangu
10:05 Musical item
10:10 Eulogy by His Excellency President of the Republic of South Africa,
Mr Cyril Ramaphosa
10:30 Sermon by His Grace Comforter: Reverend Kgoši Matlala
10:45 Cortège departs for the cemetery
PART THREE
At the cemetery
10:55 Family and President Ramaphosa seated
11:00 National Flag handed over to the family
Last Post and Reveille sounded
Ceremonial Guard withdraws
11:05 Vote of thanks: Nyaku Kgaudi (Hlabirwa ’a Bauba)

8. National Anthem
Nkosi sikelel’ iAfrika
Maluphakanyisw’ uphondo lwayo,
Yizwa imithandazo yethu,
Nkosi sikelela, thina lusapho lwayo.
Morena boloka setjhaba sa heso,
O fedise dintwa le matshwenyeho,
O se boloke,
O se boloke setjhaba sa heso,
Setjhaba sa South Afrika - South Afrika.
Uit die blou van onse hemel,
Uit die diepte van ons see,
Oor ons ewige gebergtes,
Waar die kranse antwoord gee,
Sounds the call to come together,
And united we shall stand,
Let us live and strive for freedom,
In South Africa our land.