Malinga distinguished himself in many ways, touched many lives

THE late Special Advisor to the President and former Bulawayo Mayor, Cde Joshua Teke Malinga, has been described as a pioneer of the disability movement in Zimbabwe, as well as a champion who lived true to the adage that disability was never inability.

Cde Malinga, also a Zanu-PF Politburo member, died on Friday evening at his Richmond suburb home after battling prostate cancer. He was 79.

Zanu-PF Politburo member and liberation war stalwart, Retired Colonel Tshinga Dube, who visited the family yesterday to console them following the bereavement, said Cde Malinga’s status had outgrown that of being a former councillor and mayor of Bulawayo.

“Cde Malinga was a national leader in his own right. He was in charge of the whole disabled community in the country hence his status as a Special Advisor to the President on disability issues,” he said.

“That on its own shows us that he was someone who touched the hearts of many people at national level. Cde Malinga taught us and indeed proved to us that disability is not inability, that is the legacy that he left behind.

“All the disabled members of our society learned that their condition was not inability to scale and achieve one’s dreams,” said Rtd Col Dube.

He said Cde Malinga’s leadership was always a marvel and this was the reason why, during his two-term tenure as executive mayor of Bulawayo, the city was a torch-bearer in the country and beyond its borders.

The late Cde Malinga was Bulawayo mayor from 1993 to 1995, taking over from Clr Israel Gadlula and was succeeded by Clr Abel Siwela.

“His record in the council chambers is a clean one, the city was smart and a marvel for all unlike what we have been witnessing of late.

“This and other many positives about his character and positions is why as Bulawayo, we are all in unison that he deserves to be declared a national hero where he will lie alongside other great sons and daughters of this country,” said Rtd Col Dube.

In his eulogy, founding member and former president of the National Council of Disabled Persons of Zimbabwe (NCDPZ) Dr Obadiah Moyo, said Cde Malinga was a courageous and fearless disability activist who was also instrumental in the crafting of the Disability Act of 1992.

“In 1975, during the peak of Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle, a disability movement, Council for the Welfare of the Disabled, which later changed its name to National Council of Disabled Persons of Zimbabwe (NCDPZ) was founded. Its first chairman was Mr Albert Mthupha, who when he left for further studies abroad, Cde Malinga took over the chairmanship of NCDPZ,” he said.

“His first task was the development of a Strategic Plan of Action, with the slogan ‘A Voice of Our Own,’ whose influence spread to all corners of Zimbabwe,” said Dr Moyo.

He said at independence in 1980, the NCDPZ crafted a programme to engage the new black majority government.

“I recall in 1983 when then former Prime Minister Cde Robert Mugabe had just addressed a disability consultation meeting at St Giles Rehabilitation Centre in Harare, Cde Malinga invited me and a few colleagues to approach the President.

“As the President was on his way out he confronted him and informed him that all that he read in his speech was not being done to the majority of persons with disabilities. The President immediately invited the then minister responsible for Social Services, the late Cde Kumbirai Kangai, and tasked him to be in contact with us,” said Dr Moyo.

“This was the start of our relationship with the Government, leading to various collaborative efforts.”

He said in 1984, under the leadership of Cde Malinga, NCDPZ completed the construction of Freedom House in Bulawayo, a social centre on land that was donated by the City of Bulawayo and at that time, the influence of the NCDPZ had spread to various countries in Africa and the world over, leading to Cde Malinga being appointed into continental and international disability bodies where he rose to become the president of the Disabled Peoples International (DPI) where he spearheaded the rise of disabled persons organisations (DPOs) in various countries, especially in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Due to Cde Malinga’s astute leadership qualities, many countries visited Zimbabwe to learn while the country hosted various regional and international conferences on disability rights.

Cde Malinga was affected by polio at the age of two, which affected his legs. He moved to Bulawayo at the age of 12 after one of his brothers suggested that he be enrolled at the Jairos Jiri Centre in Nguboyenja, Bulawayo. His brother later came through with the now-late national hero, Cde Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu, who was a member of the family, and they took Cde Malinga to Jairos Jiri where he first trained as a cobbler.

At the age of 14, Cde Malinga was identified as a very intelligent child as he spoke good English to the amusement of many. He then enrolled for his primary school and completed it in less than the stipulated period. He later went to Mpopoma High School where he passed with flying colours and proceeded to Bulawayo Polytechnic to study accounting. He worked at the Jairos Jiri Centre and rose through the ranks to top management before he was awarded a scholarship to study in the United Kingdom. After completing his studies, he came back and joined the Government income tax department.

He became an activist and rose in politics to become a popular figure. Cde Malinga was later elected Ward 2 Councillor in the early 1990s. He is survived by a wife, 10 children and several grandchildren. Mourners are gathered at number one Brooke Road, Richmond, Bulawayo.