The Sunday News
FIRST Lady amai Auxilia Mnangagwa has since ascending to the top been touching on various key aspects of people’s lives, the young and the old alike.
She has shared her wisdom on success, touched on how to deal with failure so as to rise again and preached on how one can live the best life.
The First Lady has travelled the length and breadth of the country doing humanitarian work and has been a leading ambassador for health, spearheading the campaign against cervical cancer and has also toured the whole country enlightening women on inheritance laws, encouraging the young and old to live healthy lifestyles through taking part in sporting activities.
She has changed lives by donating food, clothes and blankets to the old and the needy, and by providing equipment and resources to economically empower citizens. The sporting fraternity has not been left out, with the First Lady showing her skills on various sporting disciplines and last week, she hosted the national netball team at State House, which is due for the Netball World Cup tournament in the UK. It is not every day that a sporting discipline like netball gets such a recognition, but rightfully, she saw it worthwhile to host the girls and give them a pat at the back for putting the country on the world map, and also assuring them of Government support.
She was also in Bulawayo last week where she met with surviving spouses of liberation stalwarts and national heroes, and also had time to meet with many liberation heroines. In a show of compassion and motherliness, she took time to visit former President Canaan Banana’s widow, Janet and the late national hero, Dr Dumiso Dabengwa’s widow, Zodwa, at their Bulawayo homes.
She visited Mrs Banana to thank her for the good work she did while she was still the First Lady and proceeded to console Mrs Dabengwa who lost her husband last month. She did not stop there, she also visited war veterans; Cdes David Mongwa “Sharpshoot” Moyo, Aaron Ndlovu and Jane Ngwenya.
She was accompanied by Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Minister Sithembiso Nyoni, Minister of State for Bulawayo Provincial Affairs Judith Ncube, MP Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga and Service Chiefs.
Amai Mnangagwa donated blankets and food to Mrs Banana and the three war veterans, who were pioneer guerrilla fighters during the liberation struggle. When she arrived at Mrs Banana’s home in Southwold suburb, the former First Lady wept and expressed gratitude to Amai Mnangagwa for visiting her.
After the visits, Amai Mnangagwa met elderly people from Bulawayo at the Large City Hall, where she donated blankets and groceries and assured them that the Government will make sure that they don’t go hungry.
It was a memorable sight to see spouses of fallen national heroes and living liberation stalwarts under one roof, something that had never been seen before. Those who attended the gathering at the Large City Hall included Mrs Gift Masuku, wife to the late Zipra commander Cde Lookout Masuku, Mrs Margaret Ncube, wife to the late Cde Misheck Velaphi Ncube, Mrs Thandiwe Nkala, wife to the late Cde Enos Nkala, Mrs Qhubekiso Mangena, wife to the late former Zipra commander Cde Alfred Nikita Mangena, Mrs Chipo Nyathi, wife to the late national hero Dr Isaac Nyathi and Mrs Sikhumbuzo Nkala, wife to the late war veterans’ leader, Cde Cain Nkala.
The families of former Zipra stalwarts Cde Njini Ntutha and Lazarus Nkala sent representatives.
Minister Nyoni commended the First Lady for reaching out to everybody.
The work by the First Lady is not only uplifting the spirits of everyone in the country, but also preaching love, togetherness, hard work and patriotism to our beloved country.
