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Andile Tshuma Chronicle Reporter
THE Bulawayo Provincial Joint Operations Command led by Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube has visited four liberation war veterans in the city. The delegation which comprised of police, army, prisons and Central Intelligence Organisation representatives visited Stanley Gagisa Nleya in in Luveve, Jack Mpofu in Cowdray Park, Moff at Hadebe in Magwegwe and David Moyo in Emganwini.
They visited the four cadres and handed over grocery hampers to help sustain them during the Covid-19 period.
Cde Hadebe suffers from prostate cancer and is in need of urgent surgery which costs about US$6 000 which he said his family has failed to raise.
Cde Moyo suffers from joint and bone illnesses following a bomb attack during the war and said he needs medication to help suppress chronic pain.
Cdes Mpofu and Nleya also suffer from multiple ailments and are on chronic illness medication. Minister Ncube said Government received official communication on the poor health of the four war veterans, hence the decision to step in and have JOC visiting them.
“We heard from leadership in the war veterans’ association that some of the cadres are unwell and need some form of assistance. With this raging Covid-19 pandemic, we saw it as an opportune time to visit them and reassure them and to give our small gifts of grocery hampers and face masks for their families,” she said.
She said consultations were underway on a system in assisting war veterans.
Minister Ncube added that an army doctor will be assessing the health status of the four cadres today as they work on a treatment plan for the comrades, who are now also advanced in age.
“We are still consulting on how else they may be assisted and they will also let us know about what is needed most. So the army doctor, Colonel Dube, will visit all four of them tomorrow so that he can assess them and have an appreciation of their health conditions and then come back to us with feed-back. From then on, we will see how they can get further assistance from us.
“Government is trying through its various departments to take care of its people and we are making efforts to reach out to more of the war veterans. We know that there are more who also need assistance. However, we have reached out to this group for now after their leadership notified us of their urgent needs. This is an ongoing programme and the outreach will get to more of them,” said the minister. — @andile_tshuma
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