Andrew
Sunday Mail Reporter
THE family of the late Zimbabwe African National Liberation Army (ZANLA) commander and national hero General Josiah Magama Tongogara will today host a memorial service to commemorate the 42nd anniversary of his death.
Gen Tongogara was born on February 4, 1938 in Shurugwi and died on Boxing Day in 1979 in a car accident in Mozambique, soon after the Lancaster House Agreement that gave birth to independent Zimbabwe.
Ms Nyaradzo Tongogara, daughter to the late national hero, told The Sunday Mail that the memorial service, which will be held at the National Heroes Acre, seeks to celebrate the life of the revolutionary icon.
“We will have a memorial service on Sunday (today) at the National Heroes Acre to celebrate the life of our father, who was a national hero. The memorial service will be attended by family members, Government officials and the Ministry of Defence and War Veterans Affairs. We are also expecting students from the Josiah Magama Legacy Foundation to attend,” she said.
In addition to being the Commander of the ZANLA forces, Gen Tongo was also a member of the Dare ReChimurenga and the High Command, which directed the liberation struggle against the settler regime.
Soon after taking office in 2017, the Second Republic honoured him by renaming King George VI Barracks in Harare to Josiah Magama Tongogara Barracks.
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