Online Reporter
Sikhumbuzo Moyo [email protected]
BULAWAYO Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Judith Ncube has paid tribute to fallen heroes at the Bulawayo Provincial Heroes Acre in Nkulumane, beginning her tour of the graves with the only national hero buried at the shrine, Retired Colonel Petros Khumalo.
Minister Ncube was accompanied by members of the Joint Operations Command, Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube, Zanu PF provincial leadership led by chairman Cde Jabulani Sibanda and senior Government officials.
Following a prayer at the shrine, Minister Ncube proceeded to the grave of Cde Vincent Mahuzu Ncube, the first provincial hero to be buried at the Bulawayo Provincial Heroes Acre in 1991.
Rtd Col Khumalo died on January 12, 2003, at Hillside Health Centre in Bulawayo after battling tuberculosis.
Born on December 1, 1940, in the Shabula area of Lupane, Matabeleland North, Cde Khumalo, whose nom de guerre was Cde Mpondo, was declared a national hero in recognition of his contribution to the liberation of Zimbabwe.
The Bulawayo Provincial Heroes Acre remains a place of remembrance for liberation war fighters and other cadres who made sacrifices for the country’s independence.
The tour of the graves forms part of the Heroes Day commemorations, during which the nation honours the country’s fallen heroes and heroines and reflects on their sacrifices.
