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Prosper NdlovuChronicle Reporter
ACTING President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday paid tribute to the late nationalist Advocate Lot Senda whom he described as a seasoned lawyer who contributed immensely to the country before and after independence.
Adv Senda died in Bulawayo after a short illness two weeks ago aged 94 and was buried at Athlone Cemetery in the city.
The Acting President, who was accompanied by Cabinet Ministers Retired Colonel Tshinga Dube (War Veterans) and Dr Joseph Made (Agriculture), Bulawayo MPs and senior Government officials, visited the Senda family at their home in the city and consoled them.
He said Adv Senda distinguished himself as a lawyer throughout his career, having worked closely with him while serving as Minister of Justice.
Acting President Mnangagwa also said Adv Senda was a close friend to President Mugabe having taught at Hope Fountain together. “I wish to convey my sincere condolences to the family, especially his children. Senda contributed much both before and after independence. Senda accomplished his mission and that should give the family comfort. These things happen to all,” he said.
“I had come here for a different programme, which I have just finished but I thought I could not go back without visiting the family to pay my respects.”
In response family spokesperson and son to late Adv Senda, Mr Reginald Vulindlela, expressed gratitude to Government for the honour and support they bestowed on his father.
He said President Mugabe and Cde Mnangagwa and ministers had comforted the family during its time of grief and went on to extend assistance during the burial.
“We are humbled by the manner in which our father was appreciated,” he said.
President Mugabe also sent a condolence message to the family. Politicians across the divide, lawyers and residents have described Adv Senda as a man of distinction who left behind an honourable record.
Adv Senda was influential in the Lancaster House Talks in 1979 and uniting Zimbabweans in the early 1980s as he was part of the legal team that helped craft the Unity Accord of 1987.
The late Adv Senda was born on July 3 in 1922 in Gwabhila, Filabusi in Matabeleland South.
He studied for a Bachelor of Arts in Education at Fort Hare University in South Africa which was his first degree and attained the second one, Bachelor of Laws which he attained from Grey Inn, London in 1965.
Adv Senda started working as a school teacher and then a headmaster at various schools which include Dadaya, Wenezi and Hope Fountain where he taught together with President Mugabe.
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