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President Mugabe looks on while Vice President Joice Mujuru and Florence Tanyanyiwa hold Samuel Sidunha, the late Brigadier General Misheck Tanyanyiwa’s grandson, as he throws soil into his grandfather’s grave at the National Heroes Acre yesterday

Farirai Machivenyika Senior Reporter
PRESIDENT Mugabe has urged Zanu-PF not to relax following the party’s resounding victory in the July 31 harmonised elections, saying it was imperative to fulfil pledges made to the electorate.The Head of State and Government and Commander-in-Chief of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces said this in his address to mourners at the National Heroes Acre at yesterday’s burial of Brigadier-General Misheck Tanyanyiwa. Brig Gen Tanyanyiwa died last month in Beijing, China, and was declared a national hero.

“They say once bitten twice shy. Let us not spoil the vote of July 31. It was a people’s vote for their country they did not vote for us to be MPs or because they wanted you to be more important than them. Aiwa. They voted for us as MPs so that you could go and fight for them in Parliament, fight for their rights, fight for their country, fight against sanctions, fight for the defence of their country that is why they voted for you not for you to wear a big hat and say aah ndavashe zvino, no.

“You must remain a humble beggar who went to the people to beg for their vote and the people said yes we will make you an MP provided you are going to fight for us. Here are the things that you should fight for, there is a Zim-Asset, there are ideas, the principles you should fight for first and foremost Zimbabwe for Zimbabweans.

“It is a liberated country, it is your country and we must defend it. Take the resources that we have in Zimbabwe which lie under the earth or above the earth, they belong to us and they must not be exploited by outsiders.

“We will invite our friends provided they come to assist not to be masters over us. No, that is why we say 51 and 49 (percent) hapana exception,” President Mugabe said.

He said the late Brig-Gen Tanyanyiwa was among a rare breed of liberation fighters.
“Vashoma vakazvipira kurwira nyika, kuzvipira kuifira, kuzvipira kuitambudzikira – vashoma. Handinyore – handichinhu chinokwaniswa kuitwa nevazhinji asi pakati pedu pane vakazvibuditsa paruzhinji rwevanhu vakati hatingarambe takadzvanyirirwa nemabvakure.
“Hatingarambe tirivasungwa nyika iri yedu – hatingarambe tichikumbira nyika iri yedu, tinosungirwa kuirwira idzokere mumaoko evaridzi vayo isu vene vayo,” President Mugabe said.

The President said it was the efforts of the likes of Brig-Gen Tanyanyiwa that resulted in the country’s independence despite proclamations by Ian Smith that there would not be majority rule in Zimbabwe in 1 000 years.

“Akaona zvichiitika Ian Smith in his lifetime. Akatoenda kuParliament yangaiyine majority rule in his lifetime, akatouya zvino ichiri
Milton Building tisati tadzima zita racho kuMunhumutapa, tichigara naye wakatonditi Prime Minister ini in his lifetime.

“Wakatoona Government yedu in his lifetime vari ava vakomana ava vakanga vapihwa rutsidzo,” he said.
President Mugabe said the Heroes Acre was meant for people who dedicated their lives for the betterment of the country.

“Zvitoto tinozviziva tinogara tazviziva pakati pedu kuti vakanaka vatinoisa pano havangabve muzvitoto. Aiwa vaye vaitendeuka vachitiza vamwe pavaizvipira kurwira rusununguko rwedu tinovaziva ndivovanoti iye zvino tinodawo kuti vanhu vedu vaiswe pano, vanhu venyu vanani?

“Zviito zvavo zvakamira sei – tinozvivheneka. Hatimbogara taenda kupolitburo tinogara tazviziva uri mutengesi, uri mutengesi hamba lapha haufe wakasvika pano ndepevatsvene vedu vanezviito zvakanaka, vanaTanyanyiwa vakanaka vanozvipira kurwira rusununguko nekuchengetedza nhoroondo yerusununguko, kuchengetedza zvose zvabuda murusununguko.

“Nhasi uno uri divi ripi? Wakamira here nedivi rekuti Zimbabwe ndeyevanhu. Zviri pasi, zviri pamusoro hupfumi hwayo ndehwevanhu veZimbabwe unotendera here izvozvo?

“Kana kuti unoti mabhunu vanosungirwa kupihwawo mapurazi. Ehe, pane vamwe vanodaro kuti ngavadzorerwe mapurazi. Dai makange mavhota zvisina mutsindo ndozvaida vamwe kuti vadzoserwe.

“Ndozvakanga zvakagaririrwa nemaBritish nemaAmericans. They were waiting for that day to come. That day never came. The 31st of July which came was that Zimbabwe belongs to the African people of Zimbabwe and the riches and the wealth of Zimbabwe is their own. Ndozvakataura 31st July.”

President Mugabe blasted MDC-T leader Mr Morgan Tsvangirai for pandering to the whims of the West and his calls for so-called security sector reforms.

“Imi vanaTsvangirai nezviparty zvenyu kanamuine nyika yenyu yamunoda kupa varungu, aah ndezvenyu mheno kwamunoiwana asi ino iyi haichafa yakaenda kuvarungu. Haichabva yatsvedza zvakare zvayanga yaita 2008.

“Vakomana vedu vanaTanyanyiwa vari mberi nekudhifenda nyika yedu. Munonzwa vachiti masecurity forces ndivava mune mauto, vechipurisa veIntelligence, ah kunoda kuchinjwa ikoko? Kuchinjwa chii chaunoziva iwe Tsvangirai. Kuchinjinura ndozvavanenge vachida kumononora mabhaudhi takasunga ikoko kwakabopwa,” he said.

The President said due to his diligence, Brig-Gen Tanyanyiwa had received several awards in his career. These include the Liberation, Independence, 10 Years Service Mozambique Campaign and the DRC Campaign medals, as well as the Grand Officer of the Zimbabwe Order of Merit Award.

He was pivotal in creation of the One Commando Battalion and played a key role in integration of Zanla, Zipra and Rhodesian forces into a national military in 1980.

Brig-Gen Tanyanyiwa, who was the Defence Attaché at Zimbabwe’s Embassy in China, died on November 26 at Beijing United Family Hospital.

He is survived by his wife Mariah and three children.