admin
Tendai Rupapa Senior Reporter
Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa has mourned former president Cde Robert Mugabe, saying he was pivotal in shaping the history of Zimbabwe through his dedication to the independence and development of the country.
Cde Mugabe died aged 95 in Singapore in the early hours of the morning.
Minister Mutsvangwa said no history can be written about Zimbabwe without mentioning Cde Mugabe.
“We are deeply saddened by the passing on of the former president,” she said.
“There is no history which can be written in this country for Zimbabwe without mentioning Cde Robert Mugabe. Clearly, he dedicated his life to making sure that Zimbabwe becomes independent.
“He was committed to the revolution right from the top and we gained our independence in 1980.”
Minister Mutsvangwa said Cde Mugabe played a pivotal role in the economic emancipation of the black majority by spearheading the land reform programme which was meant to correct land imbalance.
“The people of Zimbabwe will never forget Cde Robert Mugabe, especially when he spearheaded the land reform, the bone of contention in the liberation struggle,” she said.
“We are really saddened as a country.”
Minister Mutsvangwa described her personal experience with Cde Mugabe during the liberation war, saying the former president played a fatherly figure to her.
“As a war veteran, myself, I worked with him and will always remember the fatherly role he played to us when we were in the bushes,” she said.
“We did not have our parents during the liberation struggle, but he played a fatherly role which we all enjoyed. May his soul rest in peace.”
Cde Mugabe was an icon of liberation, a pan-Africanist who devoted his life to the empowerment of Zimbabweans.
He left an unflinching liberation legacy, which endures even as the nation of Zimbabwe mourns his passing on.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter