PRESIDENT Emmerson Mnangagwa has granted a State-assisted funeral to veteran author Pathisa Nyathi who died on Saturday.
In a statement yesterday, Mnangagwa urged fellow historians to carry on from where the “great, committed scholar” Nyathi had left “ so our history and heritage are comprehensively documented and interpreted”.
“Apart from marking the sad departure of a community leader, we also mourn the passing on of a man of the arts who contributed in a very big way to performing arts, including film, in ways that transformed Bulawayo into the national capital of the arts,” the President said.
“Today, his fellow actors are all the poorer without him. May their lasting tribute to him come by way of more and greater productions in his memory. That way, Pathisa Nyathi’s creative spirit will rest and repose repaid. On behalf of our party Zanu PF, government, my family and on my behalf, I wish to express my deepest, heartfelt condolences to the Nyathi family, especially to the late departed’s children who now stand doubly orphaned, having lost Umama a few years back.
“As they grieve over this their saddest loss, may they derive ample comfort from the great deeds and accomplishments of the late dear departed, many of which were done in the service of his people and his country. To that end and in his honour, I have directed that the late Pathisa Nyathi be granted a State-assisted funeral.”
Mnangagwa said only this year, he had assigned Nyathi and Paul Damasane to document the “heroic Pupu Battle of National Resistance against British colonial encroachment, and to trace the final journey of our late King Lobengula following the fall of the Ndebele Kingdom in 1893”.
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He said the assignment took them to neighbouring Zambia, where they compiled “a detailed written account of events of that tragic, yet heroic episode from our history, which the late Cde Pathisa Nyathi vividly and animatedly recounted at Pupu on the occasion of its national commemoration”, adding that he felt very proud and overwhelmed “by the sheer fervency of his commitment to the reconstruction of our national heritage which he felt had been assaulted and injured by countless colonial narratives”.
Meanwhile, Ndebele King Bulelani Lobengula kaMzilikazi Khumalo has said Nyati's death had robbed the nation of its heritage.
Nyathi was 73 at the time of his death.
The king’s spokesperson Bornwell Khumalo on behalf of the King said the death had robbed the nation of its precious gift.
“Relatives, we greet you during a dark moment after losing our father Nyathi. Indeed death is a thief; it has robbed us of our special gift as a nation. We have lost a hero in the form of a writer, a fountain of knowledge, very dedicated to his work. It is like we are dreaming. We are in pain not only the Nyathi family but the nation at large,’’ he said.
King Bulelani urged those that are able to assist the Nyathi family to do so.
“Let’s comfort each other, for we are all in pain,” he said.
Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Judith Ncube described Nyathi as someone who had the talent of narrating the history of both the country and other individuals.
“It is a loss to both the family and the nation, we stand guided by protocol, we are yet to hear about the way forward from high authorities since it happened over the weekend and today it’s a Monday,” Ncube said.
Others said Nyathi was an icon and a fountain of wisdom who told the true story of Zimbabwe in various forms.
Citizens Coalition for Change leader Welshman Ncube also mourned the loss of Nyathi, saying his passion for history, culture of Zimbabwe inspired many and made many knowledgeable about their country while at the same time his poetry portrayed the social struggles and hope to many.