Chronicle Editor
Sikhumbuzo Moyo – [email protected]
HE is the present-day Biblical Goliath, weighing nearly a massive 300kgs, coupled with a height of 2,10 metres, just 41cm shorter than the world’s tallest man, Turkey’s Sultan Kosen.
Hwange’s Big Charlie, born Charles Nyoni in 1966, can rightfully be referred to as a man mountain.
His story has been told numerous times, from his size 22 shoe to his huge meals that see him eat at least half-a- dozen eggs, a pint of milk and a loaf of bread.
He has a big teapot of tea for breakfast while for lunch or dinner, he requires a meal that is normally eaten by three men. He can devour a full chicken in one sitting while the insides of a goat are taken care of in a single day and the rest of the meat is dealt with in three days.
That is how huge, in fact, gigantic, Big Charlie is.
For many years, many residents in Hwange thought his surname was Gumbo because everyone called him Charles “Gumbo” unbeknown to them that it was in reference to his big feet. That name quickly died when news spread around town that someone had been unfortunate to learn the hard way that Big Charlie was Charles Nyoni, not Charles “Gumbo”.
He was retrenched in 2012 by the Hwange Colliery Company where he worked as a builder and refuse collector. Legend has it that during his time at the Colliery, while his workmates would carry a 50kg bag of cement in pairs, Big Charlie would easily carry four 50kg bags at one go.
Big Charlie’s condition is known as acromegaly.
Acromegaly is a rare condition where the body produces too much growth hormone, causing body tissues and bones to grow quickly. Over time, this leads to abnormally large hands and feet, and a wide range of other symptoms. Acromegaly is usually diagnosed in adults aged 30 to 50, but it can affect people of any age. People with this condition usually have a short lifespan owing to their susceptibility to infection and metabolic disorders.
However, Big Charlie has hung on for the past 57 years. He is Hwange’s own gentle giant, loved by both the young and the old, always sharing a smile with anyone who greets him.
But behind this bubbly figure is a man in pain. Big Charlie’s health is failing him and what is even worse is that he is financially incapacitated to get help. Big Charlie now suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure, two diseases that are silent assassins even to the financially capable.
“He has no money for medication and to buy food. Big Charlie needs help,” said Gugulethu Msimanga, a Hwange lad now domiciled in the United Kingdom.
Msimanga has launched a GoFundMe initiative where he intends to raise at least £500 that would go towards meeting some of Big Charlie’s welfare needs. So far, £350 has been raised.
Big Charlie suffered the unfortunate curse of losing a dad at the tender age of six. His father was one of the 427 miners that perished in an underground mine explosion at Hwange Colliery Company’s Kamandama shaft on June 6, 1972.
Three years ago, Big Charlie told our sister publication, Sunday News that his wish was to meet the First Lady, Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa as he was convinced that the First Lady, a known philanthropist, would shine light into his life and mobilise assistance for him.
“I would like to meet Amai venyika, Amai Mnangagwa so that she gets to see and appreciate my plight. I can’t walk. If I try to use public transport, the drivers do not allow me, they don’t want,” Big Charlie told Sunday News.
He has not hidden his appreciation to his former employer, Hwange Colliery Company, for letting him stay in the company house while other former employees have long been evicted.
Online Reporter