THE late former head of the National Museums and Monuments Professor Dawson Munjeri (pictured) who died recently after a long illness will be buried today at the Glen Forest cemetery.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa accorded a State-assisted funeral to Munjeri in appreciation of his excellent work which motivated many.
In an interview yesterday, family spokesperson Godfrey Gwainda said Munjeri’s burial would be in the afternoon.
“The burial will take place tomorrow (today) at 2pm at Glenforest cemetery. But before the burial a church service will be held at St Martin’s Anglican Parish in Hatfield at 8am,” he said.
Munjeri, who had a long and illustrious career which started at the National Archives of Zimbabwe in the late 1970s before he joined the National Museums and Monuments where he rose to become its executive director from 1993 to 2002, died on April 29.
In a statement on Wednesday, Mnangagwa said Munjeri’s untimely death came at a time when government needed him more than ever as it had embarked on many programmes to raise the nation’s consciousness of National and African History through Heritage Studies.
“Our nation has lost one of its choicest sons gifted with rare intellect. Upon retirement from Unesco, Munjeri came back home to resume his career in academia and, more broadly, in nation-building.
“He joined the Great Zimbabwe University as a research professor at that institution’s Centre for Cultural Heritage. What makes Professor Munjeri’s passing on most poignant and particularly painful is that he left us at a time when my government has embarked on programmes to raise the nation’s consciousness of National and African history through Heritage Studies,” he said.
Mnangagwa said government had embarked on broad-based rehabilitation of historical personages and heritage sites.
“But for his untimely demise, government would have benefited even more from his vast exposure and experience. In his memory and as a tribute, these restorative programmes will continue, even with added impetus,” he said.