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Raymond Jaravaza-Bulawayo Bureau

Ms YEUKAYI Mugabe was initially sceptical when she received a phone call inviting her to Mhlahlandlela Government Complex to collect funds for her 19-year-old son’s university registration.

She assumed it was a hoax, given the unexpected nature of the news.

As a mother of three, she had every reason to be sceptical.

Her son, Malcom Mlambo, was facing the prospect of missing out on his dream of studying aeronautical engineering at the University of Zimbabwe (UZ) due to prohibitive costs.

He needed US$1 215, divided into US$500 for tuition and US$715 for accommodation at the university — money that Ms Mugabe, who supports her family by selling clothes at the Emganwini flea market, simply did not have.

Mlambo had excelled in his A-Levels, achieving 15 points in Pure Mathematics, Physics, and Chemistry at Dadaya High School.

Time was running out, and despite knocking on many doors seeking financial assistance, they had received no positive responses.

Everything changed on a Saturday morning when Ms Mugabe received the call from an official in the Office of the Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Judith Ncube.

The official instructed her to come to Mhlahlandlela Government Complex to collect US$1 215 in cash and start making arrangements for her son to travel to Harare and begin his studies in the field of aeronautical engineering, which focuses on designing, developing, testing, and producing aircraft.

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“I stared at my phone in disbelief after the call, unable to process what I had just been told.

“For a moment, I thought someone was playing games with me. It was just two days before my son was due to start at UZ, and I had no money. “I had resigned myself to the fact that he would miss out on his dream to study aeronautical engineering,” Ms Mugabe said. True to her word, Minister Ncube had kept her promise to Ms Mugabe, vowing to do everything in her power to secure assistance for the young man.

That help finally came from none other than Vice President, Dr Constantino Chiwenga.

“I have no words to express how grateful I am to Vice President Chiwenga for finding it in his heart to pay for my son’s university tuition.

“Minister Ncube told me that Vice President Chiwenga said his family has adopted Malcom and they will pay for his tuition and other expenses until he finishes his studies,” said Ms Mugabe.

The young genius is already in Harare and on Thursday was asked by the Vice President to go to Munhumutapa Building to collect money for a brand new laptop.

“I feel like crying when I think of all the good things that Vice President Chiwenga has done for my family,” she added. Her advice to parents who find themselves in a similar position is to knock on Government offices and seek help.

“People must not be afraid to knock on Government offices. Sometimes help is just around the corner, and all it takes is to seek assistance when faced with a problem that you cannot solve on your own.”