News / Africa
Mugabe jets into Malawi for wa Mutharika's burial
22 Apr 2012 at 17:00hrs | Views
LILONGWE, Malawi - President Robert Mugabe arrived in Malawi on Sunday to attend burial of his comrade late President Bingu wa Mutharika.
President Mugabe, who is accompanied by the First Lady, Grace Mugabe; Foreign Affairs Minister, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi and other senior government officials, left Harare this Sunday afternoon and was seen off the Harare International Airport by Vice President Joice Mujuru, service chiefs and other government officials.
Mugabe will join other African Heads of State and Government, who are expected in Malawi to bid farewell to President Wa Mutharika, who died of heart attack on the 5th this Month.
President Mugabe was a close friend of Mutharika in the SADC region and in most occasions Malawians would accuse their President of copying Mugabe's tendencies of Mugabe that included human rights abuses and crack down on critics.
The ministerial committee on the funeral says apart from Mugabe, several other African Heads of State will attend the burial with Tanzania and Mozambique Presidents expected to arrive on Monday, April 23, which is burial day.
Malawian Local Government Minister, who heads the funeral preparations, Mr Henry Mussa was quoted confirming that new President Joyce Banda's office declared April 23 a public holiday to give Malawian people an opportunity to attend the funeral ceremony.
The body of the late Wa Mutarika is lying in state at Sanjika Palace in Blantyre as thousands of Malawians continue to pay their last respects.
Late Mutharika will be buried at his Ndata farm in his home district of Thyolo, southern Malawi where he built multi-million kwacha house and a mausoleum for his late wife, Ethel.
Mutharika himself will be buried in the same mausoleum next to his wife's resting place.
Mutharika died on April 5 at Kamuzu Central Hospital where he was rushed to after a cardiac arrest at State House.
But the government had to fly his dead body to South Africa to buy time to attempt to rape the constitution prevent the then estranged Vice President Joyce Banda from taking over.
President Mugabe, who is accompanied by the First Lady, Grace Mugabe; Foreign Affairs Minister, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi and other senior government officials, left Harare this Sunday afternoon and was seen off the Harare International Airport by Vice President Joice Mujuru, service chiefs and other government officials.
Mugabe will join other African Heads of State and Government, who are expected in Malawi to bid farewell to President Wa Mutharika, who died of heart attack on the 5th this Month.
President Mugabe was a close friend of Mutharika in the SADC region and in most occasions Malawians would accuse their President of copying Mugabe's tendencies of Mugabe that included human rights abuses and crack down on critics.
The ministerial committee on the funeral says apart from Mugabe, several other African Heads of State will attend the burial with Tanzania and Mozambique Presidents expected to arrive on Monday, April 23, which is burial day.
Malawian Local Government Minister, who heads the funeral preparations, Mr Henry Mussa was quoted confirming that new President Joyce Banda's office declared April 23 a public holiday to give Malawian people an opportunity to attend the funeral ceremony.
The body of the late Wa Mutarika is lying in state at Sanjika Palace in Blantyre as thousands of Malawians continue to pay their last respects.
Late Mutharika will be buried at his Ndata farm in his home district of Thyolo, southern Malawi where he built multi-million kwacha house and a mausoleum for his late wife, Ethel.
Mutharika himself will be buried in the same mausoleum next to his wife's resting place.
Mutharika died on April 5 at Kamuzu Central Hospital where he was rushed to after a cardiac arrest at State House.
But the government had to fly his dead body to South Africa to buy time to attempt to rape the constitution prevent the then estranged Vice President Joyce Banda from taking over.
Source - Byo24News
