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Tendai Rupapa and Fungai Lupande

Elderly people in Mashonaland Central Province have expressed gratitude to First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa, through her Angel of Hope Foundation, for providing them with lessons on Covid-19 and giving them groceries at a time the cost of basic commodities is rising beyond the reach of many.

Some of the beneficiaries are widows, who are also looking after their orphaned grandchildren, while others are now too old to fend for themselves.

The elderly in parts of Mashonaland Central that include Mt Darwin, Mbire, Muzarabani, Centenary, Mazowe and Guruve yesterday paid tribute to the First Lady for her benevolence.

This comes at a time when the world is grappling with coronavirus. The First Lady is leading from the front in mobilising resources needed to fight the pandemic. Throughout the meetings around the province, social distancing regulations were observed as prescribed by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Zimbabwe is under an extended lockdown after President Mnangagwa ordered an additional 14 days to May 3 after the expiry of the initial 21-day lockdown on Sunday. The lockdown is part of measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19.

This has largely left the elderly and other vulnerable communities without food, hence the First Lady’s intervention.

Sekuru Honour Chikwama (64) from Muzarabani could not hide his joy at the First Lady’s kindness.

“Her care for the elderly and the poor helps mould responsible communities and we cannot thank her enough,” he said.

“She is doing wonders for this nation and she is not selective.”

His sentiments were echoed by Sekuru Tobias Kasingarigwe (70), who said the First Lady had the poor at heart.

He said God should grant her more strength to expand her programmes to all corners of Zimbabwe.

Mbuya Selina Chatora (72) from Centenary was full of praise for the First Lady.

“What else would one demand of her? She is a woman of virtue who is leading by example and we wish God grants her a long life so that the whole nation benefits from her empowerment programmes.”

Sekuru Mavhura Makenzi (75) said he was awestruck by the First Lady’s zeal to uplift the living standards of the elderly.

“She is a true giver and a good leader. She has a lot of teachings that the younger generation of women should tap into. Her care for the poor is second to none.

“Her motherliness gives us comfort and we shall continue thanking God for giving us a mother of the nation like her.”

In Mazowe West, Ward 24 in Mapere Village, the Councillor Beauty Mugadzahweta said they did not have adequate information on Covid-19 and villagers were still crowding and shaking hands at funerals.

“We are thankful to Amai for educating us on Covid-19,” she said.

“We are facing challenges at funerals as people continue to crowd. When village health workers try to educate them, they haul insults at them, saying they are trying to separate them from their loved ones. Those who do not attend funerals or leave early are labelled as people who are full of themselves.

“Today we have learnt a lot through Angel of Hope Foundation. We were lacking such information and we felt left out.”

Clr Mugadzahweta said in her ward, they only heard about Covid-19 on radio and thanked Angel of Hope Foundation for giving them relevant information.

“Lessons to take home are that people have to set aside their traditional norms like handshaking, sharing towels in order to stop the spread of the disease and washing of hands with soap frequently is a must,” she said.

Clr Mugadzahweta thanked the First Lady for the groceries which came at a time when all shops in the area were closed, while some were under-stocked.

She said the beneficiaries would return to their respective villages and share information on how to protect each other from Covid-19.

People from Wychwood, Ruoko, Hota, California, Musorodoni and Three Sisters villages attended the meeting.

Amai Mnangagwa has traversed the length and breadth of the country spreading love and initiating various empowerment programmes through her Angel of Hope Foundation.