Joe Modise Appointed as Commander-in-Chief of Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK)
Exactly sixty years ago, on this day, 23 November 1965, leaders of the African National Congress’s (ANC’s) External Mission visited Kongwa Camp, near Dodoma, in Tanzania, to inform the cadres that Joe Modise (aka “Thabo More”) had been appointed Umkhonto we Sizwe’s (MK’s) new Commander-in-Chief. Soon after the announcement was made, Kongwa Camp Commander Ambrose Mzimkhulu Makiwane (aka “Mbhobho”) resigned from MK.
The feud between Makiwane and Modise had started before the latter was appointed as Commander-in-Chief, which meant that he was above the rank of Camp Commander. Joe Modise’s status in Kongwa created some tensions between him and the Camp Commander, as comrades were infuriated by Makiwane’s use of the ‘hosepipe’ to cane them for their misdemeanours. Hence his nickname became “Umbhobho”, for the use of the ‘hosepipe’ to punish them when they came late to the camp, were perceived to be drunk or for other encroachments that they might have committed.
Comrades then began taking their grievances to Joe Modise, thus creating hostilities between those who supported Modise and those who sided with the Camp Commander. These tensions assumed tribal and ethnic proportions, with those who came from the Transvaal, who were largely Sotho, Tswana, Sepedi, Venda or Tsonga speaking coalescing around Modise, whereas those who were Xhosa-speaking tended to support Makiwane. Ho
