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Biography
Chief Justice Thandathu Jongilizwe Mabandla (born 16 August 1926) is the chief of the AmaBhele Tribe in Alice (Tyume). He was born on 16 August 1926 and is the eldest son of the late Simolwna Mabandla
His reign as chief of the Bhele tribe started sometime around 1957. On 1 January 1968, he became the first chief executive councillor of the Ciskei Territorial Authority and later on August 1st of 1972 ascended to newly created position of Chief Minister. In 1972 Lennox Leslie Wongama Sebe, a member of Mabandla's cabinet, broke with Mabandla and formed his own party, the Ciskei National Independence Party (CNIP). The CNIP became successful in 1973 and Sebe then became the new Chief minister of the Ciskei. In 1978, Mabandla and other members of his party crossed floors to the CNIP and Ciskei became a one-party state.