A ZANU PF and Forever Associates Zimbabwe (FAZ) activist Norman Mawungwa who committed suicide last week by hanging himself from a tree was buried like a “rat”, reported The Mirror.
That was in spite of Mawungwa’s last wish and plea to party members and relatives for a decent burial.
Mawungwa recorded a suicide audio in which he acknowledged to relatives and party colleagues that he did not have a funeral policy and pleaded for a decent burial.
He also specified his preferred resting place at a hill in the area but family elders including Chief Mawungwa ignored the wish and buried him at his homestead instead.
The Mirror reported that Chief Mawungwa barred mourners from singing, praying, or giving speeches at the FAZ member’s funeral.
The traditional leader also ordered that the deceased be buried with his full wardrobe including FAZ and ZANU PF regalia.
All of Mawungwa’s clothes were thrown into the grave and family members resolved not to take any souvenir from the deceased.
ZANU PF, which was expected to take over funeral costs, did not provide a beast to be slaughtered at the funeral, and as a result, mourners were served sadza with cabbages.
Despite claims by FAZ member Mugove Mubaiwa that ZANU PF donated US$1 000 towards the funeral, Mawungwa was laid to rest in a coffin priced at US$90.
A neighbouring Chief who preferred anonymity was quoted as saying:
It’s either the US$1 000 was stolen within ZANU PF ranks or people were lied to that there was a donation otherwise how does one explain such a pauper burial where mourners could not even get a decent meal?
The MP for the area, Pupurai Togarepi, whom Mawungwa worked for during the August 2023 election campaigns, and the reason he made so many enemies, did not turn up or deliver an official condolence message.
There was no ZANU PF official at the funeral of the man who is accused of killing and brutalising perceived opposition supporters for the sake of the party.
Mawungwa’s body was not allowed in the homestead after being removed from the tree where he hung, as per local customs.
The body was dumped and spent day and night in a field covered with tree branches and only collected in the morning and taken straight to the grave for burial.
Women at the funeral reportedly refused to give undertakers their MaZambia (wrapping cloths), to be used to lower the coffin into the grave.
As a result, undertakers had to drop the coffin 1.8 metres down and it hit the bottom of the grave with a thud.
The undertakers hastily covered the grave with sand and mourners left immediately afterwards.
Chief Mawungwa explained why the mourners refused to have their wrapping cloths used to lower the deceased’s casket into the grave. He said:
We will not allow any of our clothes to be used on this man’s coffin. His evil spirits will follow us.
Neither will any relative take any souvenir of his. He had demons and they will stick with you.
You know how he died. His spirit is not clean. There will be no singing, speechifying or praying. We just bury him, eat food prepared for us and leave.
A war veteran and close confidante of Mawungwa identified as Mudukuti was not happy because ordinary people celebrated Mawungwa’s death. He said:
Why do you hate him so much? What did he do to you? I saw people at Mawungwa Business Centre in great joy after the death of Mawungwa.
A local teacher reportedly tortured by Mawungwa in 2008 who declined to be named said:
I came all the way from Mpandawana just to see for myself that this evil man was gone.
God exists, the man has been buried like a rat. They buried him like they were burying a rat.
In the audio that he recorded shortly before taking his own life, and addressed to his son, Mawungwa said his political past was tormenting him. He said: “Mwanangu ndashungurudzwa nezvematongerwe enyika, dei ndakaziva haitungamiri.”
More: Pindula News