Zimpapers Logo

Wallace Ruzvidzo, Harare Bureau

EVERY Zimbabwean should love their country and demonstrate a high level of patriotism, the hallmark for any democratic and progressive nation, President Mnangagwa has said.

The President said this yesterday evening when he paid his condolences to Central Intelligence Organisation Director-General, Ambassador Isaac Moyo, at his  family home in Harare, following the death of his eldest daughter, Shumirai, in Dublin, Ireland, about two weeks ago.

Shumirai died after a short illness aged 41.

In his remarks, President Mnangagwa said it was important that Zimbabweans demonstrate love for their country as was done by Shumirai throughout her adult life.

Shumirai was a political activist who sought to see Zimbabwe continue to develop under the Second Republic.

The President said her death was not only a loss to the Moyo family, but to Zimbabwe at large as she was an “important patriot”.

“Before she left to go abroad, she was doing activities to further the party (Zanu-PF), which is not a small thing because that means she was uplifting the country,” he said.

“A girl political activist is rare, but this is what she was doing. So we have lost a patriotic daughter of Zimbabwe.

“Not many are patriotic and demonstrate love for their country, but she did and she was unapologetic. So today, we are assembled here to bid farewell to a patriotic daughter of this country.”

President Mnangagwa said it was heartening to note that Shumirai aspired to gain Zanu-PF an urban parliamentary seat once she was done with her endeavours abroad.

“She had expressed her desire to come home and wrestle a parliamentary seat from the opposition, then we would have a Zanu-PF representative.

“That was her plan,” he said.

President Mnangagwa said while she was sick, he was often apprised on how she was doing in hospital by Ambassador Moyo.

The President informed the family that Vice-President Kembo Mohadi would represent him at the burial today.

Vice-President Dr Constantino Chiwenga said he got to know Shumirai when she arranged a rally for him to address in 2018.

“From what I was being told by her sibling here, she was an active person growing up, who was jovial.

“I started to know her in the political field when she arranged a rally for me in Mabelreign, Harare, and we went to address,” he said.

Ambassador Moyo described his daughter as a tenacious political activist who sought to see Zanu-PF triumphing in all spheres.

He narrated how she once convinced VP Chiwenga to address a rally in 2018.

“Her aspirations for when she got back from Ireland were to unseat the current Harare West MP and win it for Zanu-PF, but unfortunately, she is not with us anymore.

“She was a political activist and even arranged a political rally for VP Chiwenga,” he said.

Ambassador Moyo then narrated her ordeal up until her untimely death.

“She went to work one day and she fell ill there, and after the second day of her admission, she was complaining of headaches and the doctors did tests, some of which were taken to Germany to see if she had cancer of the brain, but again she was found without cancer of the brain but her brain was swelling and this was what caused the headaches.

“She was then put in intensive care and while she was in there, she did not eat. She was being fed through the neck and she was virtually non-responsive,” he narrated.

The funeral service was attended by ministers, permanent secretaries and other Government officials.