Online Reporter
Victor Maphosa-Mashonaland East Bureau
MUTOKO District Heroes Acre is being rehabilitated and beautified under an initiative being funded by Mutoko educationist and businessman, Mr Archford Gwangwadze.
The rehabilitation involves placing granite tombstones on the graves of all the liberation heroes interred at the site and painting the graves with Zimbabwe’s national flag colours.
When the Herald Online crew visited the shrine, about 80 percent of the works had been completed.
Mr Gwangwadze saluted the fallen and living heroes for their courage and sacrifices in waging a war that liberated the country and put an end to oppression and inequality.
He said beautifying the shrine is one of the ways to thank the fallen heroes for their sacrifice.
“I am upgrading the Mutoko District Heroes Acre in Mashonaland East province. I want to thank the leadership of Mutoko who include Cde Mabel Chinomona, our legislator Cde Isaac Tasikani, the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) and war veterans for the support,” he said.
“We saw it proper to do this for our liberators, they deserve it simply for the selfless job they did to bring independence to Zimbabwe. They died, some in a brutal way, their sacrifice cannot be measured, and now we are giving them this honour of beautifying their final resting place.
“We are in the process of putting tombstones on their graves and also painting the tombs with the colours of the Zimbabwean flag. This is our way of thanking them for the sacrifice.”
Mr Gwangwadze said, given more resources, he is willing to beautify more heroes’ acres across the province.
Mutoko is one of the districts which experienced fierce clashes between Smith soldiers and freedom fighters.
