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Senior Reporter
THE official unveiling by President Mugabe of the late Vice-President Joshua Nkomo’s statue in Bulawayo on December 22 would be an important event in the history of Zimbabwe, demonstrating that the 1987 Unity Accord was irreversible, Senior Minister of State Cde Simon Khaya Moyo has said.
Cde Khaya Moyo, who was guest of honour at a Zanu-PF fundraising dinner in Bulawayo on Saturday, told Chronicle that this year’s Unity Day would be celebrated in style in the City of Kings.
“It’s no longer a rumour that the late VP Nkomo’s statue will be officially unveiled on December 22 by none other than President Mugabe,” said Cde Khaya Moyo, who is also Zanu-PF national chairman.
“I confirm that the President is coming. He will also commission the Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo International Airport and the renaming of Main Street into Joshua Nkomo Street. This will be done in honour of the great man.”
He said Ministers of Home Affairs, Transport and Local Government, Cde Kembo Mohadi, Dr Obert Mpofu and Dr Ignatius Chombo and their officials were working flat out to ensure that all logistics were in place for the day.
“It’s important that we remain united as a nation and that is why President Mugabe has undertaken to commission these projects to show that the Unity Accord is irreversible,” Cde Khaya Moyo said.
He added: “We must all subscribe to it because it derives its authority from the two former liberation movements, Zanu and Zapu and their armies, Zipra and Zanla, who liberated this country.”
On Friday a delegation of senior Government officials headed by the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Munesu Munodawafa, and his Local Government, Public Works and National Housing counterpart, Killian Mupingo, also visited the city to assess progress in preparation for the day.
Dr Nkomo’s statue was erected in 2010 but pulled down before its official unveiling after Bulawayo residents and the Nkomo family complained that the dimensions of the initial pedestal did not capture the attributes of the late Father Zimbabwe in full.
Dr Nkomo died on July 1, 1999, and was accorded national hero status. The erection of his statue is in memory of his illustrious works and contributions to the liberation of the country and its development after independence.
Online Reporter