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Tendai Rupapa Senior Reporter

Nyaradzo Funeral Services yesterday donated two mobile ablution facilities to President Mnangagwa and First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa.

Co-founder and group chief executive Mr Phillip Mataranyika said his firm saw it necessary to provide the First Family with ablution facilities because their daily routines involved a lot of travel.

“We are here today to show our commitment to the cause of fighting this Covid-19 pandemic that is so widespread across the globe,” he said.

“Today (yesterday), we came to make our contribution to the President and the First Lady because we know that they will be going out almost every day conducting their work.

“We felt they might get exposed to the virus through the use of not-so-clean ablution facilities, so we brought two ablution facilities today for the President and the First Lady’s use so that in the event that they go out on duty, they are not going to be using facilities that will end up getting them exposed.”

Mr Mataranyika challenged other corporates to come forward and support Government programmes in the fight against Covid 19.

“We would want to see Zimbabwe having very few casualties, not as much as we see every day on television where we see thousands of people dying in other countries,” he said.

“So far, we do not have as much loss of life as we have seen on national television, people dying in other countries.

“So we want to encourage other corporates to come and support the Government and support the people of Zimbabwe in this time of this very difficult pandemic. We are encouraging our fellow corporates to support the cause and fight this pandemic together.”

Mr Mataranyika said his group will assist in decanting the ablution facilities whenever the need arose.

The First Lady praised Nyaradzo Group for its gesture and said she enjoyed a good working relationship with the firm.

“I thank you for what you have done,” she said.

“I want to respect this thoughtfulness in relation to the health of the nation in these trying times. It is unusual that some people treasure the health of others. I have worked with Nyaradzo for a long time. It did not start with this virus.

“They have been assisting us even through our various philanthropic programmes. I also used to work closely with the company when I was a Member of Parliament.”

The First Lady said her duties and those of the President demanded regular travelling, but they had never considered how to protect themselves from the pandemic, in the way Nyaradzo had done.

She thanked other corporates and individuals that have been assisting her while she conducted her philanthropic work.

“I would want to thank the corporate world very much,” said the First Lady.

“I did not know that there are people who think of my work and what I do. They have come in numbers to help me to serve the nation and I have also realised that alone I cannot make it, but what I am doing has caught the hearts of so many people and they are coming in their numbers to support me.

“For example, today, I had a visit from Nyaradzo.

“They thought of me and my husband, the President, to give us mobile toilets that we didn’t even think of because our minds, both of us, are always thinking of what is happening and how to assist the nation.

“The President is leading from the front in the fight against this Covid-19, so we do not have time to think of ourselves, so Nyaradzo came to say, ‘do you know that you are also open to this Covid-19. It can affect you’. They then came aboard and decided to help us through this donation.

“Corporates have helped us as Angel of Hope Foundation and we want to thank them for their kind gesture.

“The efforts that they are making through our foundation is going a long way to help the vulnerable members of the society.”