News / National
National hero snub for former Speaker
12 Oct 2016 at 09:18hrs | Views
The late former Speaker of Parliament Cyril Ndebele, who is set to be buried today at his Denver Farm in Nyamandlovu, deserved national hero status, opposition parties have said.
Ndebele succumbed to an undisclosed ailment in Harare on Friday at the age of 83.
War Veterans minister Tshinga Dube announced yesterday that the government had accorded Ndebele a State-assisted funeral, despite requests by his colleagues in political circles that he be declared a national hero.
Former Vice-President Joice Mujuru's Zimbabwe People First and Dumiso Dabengwa-led Zapu told Southern Eye that Ndebele was a suitable candidate for national hero status considering the roles he played in the liberation struggle and post-independent Zimbabwe.
Ndebele was accorded a state-assisted funeral and the Government has given his family $10 000. At the time of his death, Ndebele was the chairperson of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission following his appointment in February this year.
Ndebele joined the African National Congress in South Africa in 1960 as a student at the University of Natal. He earned a law degree from Queens University, Belfast, in Northern Ireland in 1970.
He became zapu chairperson in 1970 after returning to then Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). He was a member of the legal team of the Patriotic Front in the Geneva, Malta and Lancaster House conferences, leading to the country's Independence in 1980.
After Independence, he was a councillor in Bulawayo and after the Unity Accord was signed in 1987, Ndebele became an MP in 1990. As a lawmaker, he was the chairperson of the Privileges Committee and the Parliamentary Legal Committee.
After he became the Speaker of Parliament in 1995, he created the Parliamentary Reform Committee, paving way for far reaching changes to the Legislative Assembly.
He is survived by his wife, children and several grandchildren
Ndebele succumbed to an undisclosed ailment in Harare on Friday at the age of 83.
War Veterans minister Tshinga Dube announced yesterday that the government had accorded Ndebele a State-assisted funeral, despite requests by his colleagues in political circles that he be declared a national hero.
Former Vice-President Joice Mujuru's Zimbabwe People First and Dumiso Dabengwa-led Zapu told Southern Eye that Ndebele was a suitable candidate for national hero status considering the roles he played in the liberation struggle and post-independent Zimbabwe.
Ndebele was accorded a state-assisted funeral and the Government has given his family $10 000. At the time of his death, Ndebele was the chairperson of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission following his appointment in February this year.
He became zapu chairperson in 1970 after returning to then Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe). He was a member of the legal team of the Patriotic Front in the Geneva, Malta and Lancaster House conferences, leading to the country's Independence in 1980.
After Independence, he was a councillor in Bulawayo and after the Unity Accord was signed in 1987, Ndebele became an MP in 1990. As a lawmaker, he was the chairperson of the Privileges Committee and the Parliamentary Legal Committee.
After he became the Speaker of Parliament in 1995, he created the Parliamentary Reform Committee, paving way for far reaching changes to the Legislative Assembly.
He is survived by his wife, children and several grandchildren
Source - Southern Eye
