Award-winning author Dr Titus Ntsieni  Maumela was inaugurated as the first president of the Mudzi Indigenous Faith Religion during a ceremony attended by traditional leaders, healers, politicians and many community members.

Maumela, who has more than 50 books under his belt and has won many literary awards, was inaugurated during an historic event that took place at the Thohoyandou Town Hall on Friday. The organisation's executive secretary, Mr Humbelani Nemakonde, said Maumela was being honoured for the role he had played in the development of the Tshivenda language and religion.

"He is the right man. He wrote his first book in 1952 and, even though he is retired, he continues to write. We are very proud of his achievements," said  Nemakonde.

Speaking during the ceremony, Vho Thovhele Calvin Nelwamondo urged the organisation to work towards bringing back the Vhavenda culture, which he said is fading away fast.

Nelwamondo said the organisation had a huge task of reviving culture. He added that the new generation was lost and did not know their past, which was making it difficult for them to lead a meaningful life. He thanked the new democratic dispensation for making it possible for indigenous knowledge to be practiced without hiding it.

“Many of us consulted traditional healers in the dark of the night, but today we are happy that traditional healing and the indigenous knowledge system are taking their rightful palce in society. People are no longer ashamed to consult in broad daylight,” he said.

He commended Maumela for the role he played in reviving culture. “I still remember I approached Maumela, complaining that tshikona dance was fast fading away, only to find that he was already involved in reviving it in villages,” added Nelwamondo.

He urged writers to look seriously at correcting the damage already done to the Venda language.

Representing the mayor of Vhembe, Cllr Lucas Manyuha said Maumela was old but continued to write books that changed people’s lives. “As a district, we are very proud to have you as one of our citizens. You have hoisted the flag of Vhembe very high because of your work and it is befitting that you have been inaugurated as president today,” said Manyuha.

In his response, Maumela said he wrote as a social responsibility and was not expecting anything from the community. “I am very humbled to have been honoured while I am still alive. I did not know that what I was doing touched lives and that there were people who were noticing what I was doing. I am very much encouraged, “ he said .

Mudzi was formed in 1998 with academics like professor MER Mathivha and Eskia Mphahlele playing a very big role.