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PRESIDENT Mnangagwa will preside over the burial of national hero Major-General (Retired) Richard Ruwodo at the National Heroes Acre in Harare tomorrow.
Maj-Gen (Rtd) Ruwodo died on July 7, 2026 at the Avenues Clinic in Harare.
He was 72.
The body of the late national hero will be airlifted to Manicaland today before it is returned to Harare ahead of burial at the National Shrine. In a statement yesterday, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage said the body will be airlifted to Macheke this morning.
“The Ministry of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage wishes to advise the nation that the late national hero, Major-General (Rtd) Richard Ruwodo, will be interred at the National Heroes Acre on Monday, 13 July 2026. His Excellency, the President, Cde Dr E D Mnangagwa, will preside over this burial,” the ministry said.
“Tomorrow (today), the remains of the late national hero will be airlifted from Charles Gumbo Barracks to Soft Farm in Macheke for a brief ceremony at 9am.”
After the Macheke ceremony, the body will be flown to Chief Mutasa’s area, also in Manicaland, for a provincial farewell.
“The late Major-General (Rtd) Richard Ruwodo will then be flown to Farm 1, Tsonzo, Watsoma, under Chief Mutasa, where a provincial send-off ceremony will be held from 12.30pm.”
Later today, the body will later be flown back to Harare, where family members and mourners will have an opportunity to pay their last respects.
“Later in the afternoon, at 3pm, the body of the late national hero will be flown to his Harare home at 92 Folyjon, Glen Lorne, where he will lie in state ahead of burial on Monday, 13 July 2026. Burial proceedings will commence on Monday at the National Shrine and mourners are expected to be seated by 7AM,” added the ministry.
In an interview yesterday, family spokesperson and nephew to the former military general Mr Owen Ruwodo said: “We are grateful to His Excellency President Mnangagwa for conferring national hero status on our father. We are deeply honoured by this recognition of his contribution to the country’s liberation and development.
“When the Minister of Defence and Zanu-PF National Chairperson, Cde Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri, came to convey the message of his conferment as a national hero on Friday, it was a profound moment for our family. She gave a detailed account of the man he was and the immense contribution he made to the liberation struggle and the nation.”
During the liberation struggle, Maj-Gen Ruwodo was known by the nom de guerre Moshe Pwititi.
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Born on March 14, 1954, in Samushonga village under Headman Munhama in Chief Mutasa’s area, Mutare district, Manicaland province, Maj-Gen (Rtd) Ruwodo attended Mutasa Primary School before completing his secondary education at Highfield Secondary School in Harare between 1969 and 1972.
He joined Bata Shoe Company in 1973 as a salesman and later rose to the position of relief manager before answering the call to join the liberation struggle in 1975.
The national hero was among the third group of ZANLA cadres to receive military training in Mozambique at Chimoio alongside Colonel (Rtd) Shaw Matemachani and the late Thomas Bvuma.
Following Independence, he joined the Zimbabwe National Army and steadily rose through the ranks, attaining the rank of Lieutenant in 1981, Lieutenant Colonel in 1982, Colonel in 1984, Brigadier-General in 1988 and Major-General upon retirement in 2008.
After retiring from the Zimbabwe Defence Forces, Maj-Gen (Rtd) Ruwodo was appointed Principal Director for War Veterans in the Ministry of Defence and War Veterans Affairs.
Beyond his military career, the national hero was a devoted family man, respected community leader and philanthropist who supported fellow war veterans and dependants of fallen comrades.
Maj-Gen (Rtd) Ruwodo is survived by his wife Loise, three children — Tatenda Ashleigh, Thabiso Lisa and Tinodiwa — and four grandchildren.
