Anger after Nelson Mandela's grandson converts to Islam to marry fourth wife then BANS booze in family's village-Kara O'Neill

Mandla Mandela became a Muslim to wed his fourth partner last year - but claims the move to ban alcohol is not connected to his religion

Mandla Mandela has banned booze in his family's village (Photo: AFP)

Nelson Mandela's son has sparked outrage after converting to Islam to marry his fourth wife - before banning booze in his family's Christian village.
Mandla Mandela, 42, was appointed as the chief of the Mvezo village by his grandfather in 2007.
He married his Muslim wife Rabia Clarke early last year, having converted to Islam beforehand.
But he has claimed that his decision to ban alcohol is not connected to his religion.
Last year, Mandela is said to have personally prevented a truck transporting alcohol to the Nceduluntu Tavern in Mvezo.

Mandla Mandela said the decision has nothing to do with his recent conversion to Islam (Photo: AFP)

Mvezo is inhabited by the Xhosa tribe, most of whom are Christian.
According to Mandela, all deliveries of alcohol into the village were to be stopped completely, despite the fact the taverns were licensed and operating legally.
Enraged pub owners were furious that the delivery and sale of alcohol in the area had been banned.
Nceduluntu Tavern owner Nolulamile Mdudo said that after the incident, trucks were allowed back into the area again, but she is convinced that Mandela will strike again.

Mandla with his grandfather Nelson Mandela (Photo: Corbis via Getty Images)

Mdudo told news24.com : "He confronted the AB InBev people on the truck, asking them why they brought such a big truck full of alcohol onto his land.
"I was shocked because even if he does not drink alcohol, we know that he keeps alcohol at the great place for his guests.
"If he was so much against alcohol he would not have it at his home. For a whole month, trucks could not deliver our orders."
According to The Times, Mr Mandela's lawyer said the ban was not related to his change of religion, but because of the destructive effect alcohol has on families.

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In Islam, consumption of any intoxicants, specifically alcohol, is generally forbidden in the Qur'an through several separate verses.
Mr Mandela said that his father, who died in 2005 as a result of AIDS, had previously warned about the dangers of alcohol.
He said: "One of the direct causes or influences of his death was alcohol.
"He told me and Ndaba [Mr Mandela’s younger brother] that we must look at him as an example that alcohol is bad, that we must never drink alcohol."

Mandla Mandela has been married four times (Photo: AFP)

Mandla Mandela married his first wife, Tando Mabuna-Mandela, in 2004, before she filed for divorce claiming he was infertile.
He was wed to his second wife, French citizen Anaïs Grimaud, in 2010. She gave birth to a son in 2011 but a year later Mandela denied paternity, claiming the child belonged to his brother.
He married his third wife, Mbali Makhathini, on Christmas Eve in 2011, before converting to Islam two months prior to the wedding of his fourth wife in February 2016.
In 2013, he was ordered by a South African High Court Judge to return the bodies of three of Nelson Mandela's children to their original burial place after digging them up in Qunu and moving them to Mvezo.

Source: Mirror