CHAPTER 10 CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS IN CUSTOMARY LAW

Question 1

who has full legal capacity to act under customary law?

Answer 1

family head

Question 2

what are the responsibilities of family heads?

Answer 2

• only family heads were competent to enter into
  contracts in customary law.
• They were authorised to conclude contracts on
  behalf of their families as well as on behalf of individual members of their
  families.

-An individual was regarded as a family head once he had entered into a marriage and had established his own household.

-However, only males could become family heads.

Question 3

what is ukutheleka ?

Answer 3

a procedure that entails the wife’s father or his heir taking
her and her children away from her husband to enforce
payment of outstanding lobolo or until the lobolo is fully
paid

Question 4

what is phuthuma?

Answer 4

a procedure that entails the husband fetching his wife and
children from her father or heir where the father or his heir has resorted to ukutheleka

Question 5

what is a ukwethula contract?

Answer 5

a contract that is associated with the provision of
lobolo. It relates to an interhouse debt where property is taken from one house to establish another house in the same household or to benefit such anhouse.

Question 6

what is a ukufakwa?

Answer 6

ung woman’s father requests a relative to contribute
towards expenses to be incurred in respect of various
traditional ceremonies normally held for women. The debt is repaid from the lobolo to be received for the marriage of the young woman concerned

Question 7

what is ukwenzelela?

Answer 7

which a man or his family head or father requests his
relatives or friends to contribute towards his or his son’s
lobolo requirements or other expenses relating to his or his son’s marriage ceremony.
The contributor is to be refunded from the lobolo received for the first daughter of the recipient

Question 8

what is isondlo /
dikotlo?

Answer 8

a form of payment or remuneration by a natural guardian of a child to a person who takes care of that child

Question 9

what is mafisa
/
nqoma
/ sisa contract?

Answer 9

The mafisa contract is an agreement between the owner of cattle or other
livestock and another person who does not own cattle or other livestock to the
effect that the latter shall enjoy the use of the cattle or livestock while the ownership of the cattle or livestock and its progeny (increase) remains with the owner