Wenslus Murape
Entertainment Reporter
ALICK Macheso says he derives a lot of joy and pride in taking part in community development projects.
The sungura superstar retraced his roots on Friday and commissioned a solar-powered borehole in Dzivarasekwa Extension. This was the neighbourhood where he stayed when he arrived in Harare.
Pacific Cigarettes and local arts hub, Jive Zimbabwe, partnered Macheso in this initiative that is expected to help ease water woes in Dzivarasekwa.
Macheso said, when he arrived in Dzivarasekwa, he was a “mice baron.”
“This was my hunting ground, I used to come here to trap or dig mice for sale.
“I ended up being mice ‘baron’ because I ended up with a team that I would dispatch to sell mice in surrounding liquor stores and they would come back and cash later in the day.
“This place is so important to me and I’m so delighted to be here for this noble cause.
“I know there are a lot of efforts being undertaken by authorities to deal with water woes but we felt that we should also play our part.
“I am happy to start this initiative for the people that received me when I came to Harare. This area forms the foundation of my musical career,” said Macheso.
The musician hailed Pacific Cigarettes for providing the funds to drill the borehole that is expected to service thousands of families.
“To our partners Pacific Cigarettes, I will call them chiredzo chemvura, and Jive Zimbabwe, I salute you for making this possible.
“We need this in our communities and if you give us (musicians) support like this, we can work to change and make our communities better.”
The event was attended by hundreds of residents who hailed Macheso and his partners for this project.
Macheso is expected to drop some of the songs on his new album ‘Kupa Kuturika’ this week.
The musician has adopted a strategy of dropping songs on regular intervals on his YouTube account, a move he said is meant to counter piracy.
Online Reporter