War vets salute Mnangagwa

WAR Veterans have saluted President Mnangagwa for establishing the Museum of African Liberation in the country as that will immortalise the heroic works of the continent's liberators.

Speaking at a War Veterans conference organised by the Institute of African Knowledge (Instak) in Harare yesterday, Zanu-PF Secretary for War veterans Douglas Mahiya commended President Mnangagwa for remembering Africa war heroes through a museum that will be built in Harare.

"As a nation we are now in a very exciting phase of our history where we pay particular attention to a legacy issue which has long been denied its due recognition and respect.

"We had enjoyed the liberation of our country and other African countries but sadly we partied and forgot to document and preserve how we got independence. Some have tried to tell our liberation story but that has been presented from a spectator's point of view without getting the real and balanced story from those who actually fought the war.

"In the process we have seen external forces attempting to tell the liberation stories on our behalf and the danger with that is you end up having someone's agenda forming the narrative around the liberation war we fought as Zimbabwe and as Africa at large. "Now it is time for execution, not just talking about it as a concern," said Mahiya.

He applauded President Mnangagwa for paving the way for the establishment Museum for African Liberation in Zimbabwe.

"As War Veterans we are extremely happy that the highest office in the land, the President of Zimbabwe, His Excellency President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa has paved the way for us to establish the Museum for African Liberation in Zimbabwe.

"Riding on that Presidential blessing, we have come to an irreversible stage in our history as a nation where we are now actually establishing the Museum of African Liberation.

"The whole project is already underway and is now at an advanced stage of the museum building programme.

"As war veterans we take ownership and particular pride in being active participants and key stakeholders in the establishment of the museum. Our role is to provide the material which will tell the story in the museum so that whoever will visit the museum will get to learn from the people who actually fought the liberation war," he said.

The War Veterans conference on Commencement of Campaign to Record Oral History and Collect Liberation War Artefacts for Museum of African Liberation was attended by provincial war veterans' wing chairpersons drawn from the country's 10 provinces.

The land for the construction of the Museum of African Liberation has already been identified courtesy of the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works. The war veterans also visited the site where the museum will be constructed in Warren Park, Harare.

The construction of the multi-million-dollar project is expected to commence next year and it will be officially opened in January 2023.

Instak chief executive officer Ambassador Kwame Muzavazi said preparations for the construction of the Museum of African Liberation, that will also have a zoo to cater for children, are at an advanced stage.