President Mnangagwa this Wednesday commissioned 132 all-terrain vehicles for the Zimbabwe Republic Police and renamed the Morris Depot Police Training Academy to Zimbabwe Republic Police Mkushi Academy, unveiling its plaque.
The event was attended by senior police officers, government officials, and cabinet ministers. The President also donated 100 laptops, a projector, and printers to the ZRP Mkushi Academy, ZRP Ntabazinduna Training Centre, and the Zimbabwe Staff College.
During his address, Mnangagwa highlighted the significance of the new name for the Police Academy, which honours the Mkushi Girls Camp in Zambia. Mnangagwa said:
The unveiling of the new name for the Police Academy, ZRP Mkushi Academy, optimises aspects of the indelible history of our nation. The colonial settler regime in its typical merchant of death obsession, undertook a ferocious and heartless attack on liberation fighters and chose to decimate female guerillas at Mkushi Girls Training Camp.
The camp was a military training ground for female guerrillas during Zimbabwe’s liberation struggle. On 18 October 1978, Rhodesian forces attacked the camp, resulting in the death of over 1000 girls. Deputy Minister of Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Ruth Mavhungu Maboyi is said to be one of the survivors. The renaming of the academy is inspired by the indelible history of Zimbabwe and serves as a reminder of the sacrifices made by those who fought for the nation’s independence.