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Dr Edward Munatsireyi Pswarayi

Herald Reporter
THE Zanu-PF Politburo has conferred liberation war hero status on former Deputy Minister of Health and Child Welfare and former Member of Parliament for Mbare Dr Edward Munatsireyi Pswarayi, who died in the capital on Sunday.
Party spokesperson Cde Rugare Gumbo confirmed the development yesterday.
“Dr Pswarayi has been conferred a liberation hero status after recognising his great contribution to the country before and after independence. He is going to be given a State-assisted funeral,” said Cde Gumbo.

Family spokesperson Dr Rufaro Pswarayi said the liberation hero would be buried at his Beatrice farm tomorrow.
“There will be a bus to ferry mourners at Nyaradzo Funeral Service in the afternoon. The body will lie in state at his Tondori Farm in Beatrice, located at the 39km peg along the Harare-Masvingo highway. Burial will be done on Thursday,” said Dr Pswarayi.

Dr Pswarayi died on Sunday due to heart-related complications and had been in and out of hospital this year.
He was 87.

Born on October 5, 1926 at Zongoro in Manicaland to an Anglican priest, Dr Pswarayi went to various schools in Manicaland, including St Augustine’s.
He first enrolled at the University of Fort Hare, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree and thereafter studied medicine at the University of Witwatersrand together with another illustrious Zimbabwean doctor and nationalist, the late Dr Samuel Parirenyatwa.

It was during this period that he was exposed to the nationalist movement in South Africa.
He graduated in medicine in 1956 and returned to Rhodesia as it was then known, becoming the second African medical doctor after Dr Parirenyatwa.

He became an active member of the National Democratic Party, then Zapu through to Zanu, working with the likes of President Mugabe, James Chikerema, George Nyandoro, Herbert Chitepo and Dr Parirenyatwa.

He contributed to the activities of the struggle, utilising his personal resources like providing his vehicle for transporting the then Zapu president Joshua Nkomo.
His home in Mbare became the venue of various meetings for the ZANU leadership.

Dr Pswarayi remained in Zimbabwe and as chairman of the People’s Movement he was critical in the clandestine operational functions of Zanu.
Determined to ruin his professional career as a medical doctor, Rhodesians twice burnt his surgery at Machipisa in Highfield

His Mbare home was raided in September 1978 by the Rhodesian security forces and he was arrested and detained at Chikurubi and other prisons in Harare before he was transferred to WhaWha Prison.

Dr Pswarayi was released in 1979 and joined the Zanu-PF delegation in London for the Lancaster House conference talks.
After Independence, he was elected as Zanu-PF MP for Mbare and would later serve the Government as Deputy Minister of Transport and later as Deputy Minister of Health.

Dr Pswarayi is survived by his wife, 19 children, 37 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.