Sidumisile Mabena
Raymond Jaravaza, Zimpapers Reporter
HUNDREDS of mourners bid farewell to the late Colonel (Retired) Khutshwekhaya at the Lady Stanley Cemetery on Thursday. The late senior officer passed away on 1 May at the United Bulawayo Hospitals (UBH).
He was 75 and is survived by his wife, five children and several grandchildren.
Among the hundreds of mourners were war veterans, a majority of whom fought side by side with the late hero during the armed struggle, Government officials, family and friends.
Col (Rtd) Khutshwekhaya, whose Chimurenga name was “Dalasi Ndlela”, was born on November 25, 1951, in Mahlathini Village in Tsholotsho District, Matabeleland North Province.
He attended Mzilikazi Secondary School before leaving the country in 1976 to join the liberation struggle as a Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (ZIPRA) cadre.
He crossed into Zambia through Botswana and was initially stationed at Nampundwe and New Camp before moving to Mwembeshi.
He underwent initial military training in Tanzania under the Zimbabwe People’s Army (ZIPA) before proceeding to Morogoro and later to the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, where he specialised in weapons.
Upon returning to Zambia in 1977, he was deployed to the Zambezi escarpment, operating in strategic areas including Kariba, Chirundu and Kanyemba during the liberation war.
Following independence in 1980, Colonel Khutshwekhaya was attested into the ZNA as a private soldier and later commissioned as an officer after completing a Standardisation Course at Inkomo Barracks. Colonel Dube described the deceased as a committed cadre who served the country with distinction.
Online Reporter