Madubeko was supposed to cut-off Victoria Falls Road

WE round-up our interview with Colonel (Rtd) Waison Tshipa pseudonym Cde John Nyamupingidza. Col (Rtd) Tshipa has in the past two editions been telling our Assistant Editor Mkhululi Sibanda (MS) about the deployment of battalions by ZPRA in 1979. During the war, Col (Rtd) Tshipa commanded the Northern Front One (NF1), which covered Bulilima District in Matabeleland South Province, Hwange and Tsholotsho in Matabeleland North. In his region, Col (Rtd) Tshipa said a battalion under the command of the now late, Col Smile Madubeko Moyo was deployed and moved to set base at Butabubuli area in Tsholotsho District. Below Col (Rtd) Tshipa narrates how the battalion was deployed.  Read on…… 

MS: Which part of the Zambezi River did the Madubeko battalion cross at?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: The battalion with its support company was brought to Kazangula and that was in August 1979. As the regional commander I was there to see to it that it (the  battalion) crossed without any problems. I was with other senior commanders from the region. The battalion was properly kitted and it was a surprise for them when we ordered that they go through the swampy area. They all crossed through that. When they emerged they were in Botswana.  It was near Kasane, which during that time was not a fully developed town. There were few housing structures, some of them, grass thatched huts. The battalion was then picked by the Coley Hall Transport trucks with the troops occupying the loading box while the heavy weapons were loaded onto the trailers.  The Support Arms Company of the battalion, which was commanded by now Colonel RV Dlamini who is there in Bulawayo had an assortment of heavy weapons such as the Grad-P, Zegues, B10s and so on. The battalion disembarked at Nata, still in the Botswana territory and walked through to Mgodimasili in Tsholotsho. 

MS: As the regional commander what role were you playing there?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: As the regional commander the battalion automatically fell under my command. I went to the Zapu party offices in Francistown and signed for the Land Cruiser, which we used to transport the heavy weapons to Tsholotsho. While doing that the infantry part of the battalion was moving to its deployment area at 24, that is in Butabubili. They then set base there and started deploying. They dug their defence pits and did everything required of them, as they say the rest is history. They remained dug in there, waiting for the signal. I believe if one was to go there today, the traces of their pits should be still visible.

MS: How long did it take for the battalion to reach its destination?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: It took them three days and two nights.

MS: What was the intention of deploying a battalion in Tsholotsho, which didn’t move inland to carry out operations?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: You have heard of the Zero Hour Strategy of ZPRA whose objective was to storm Rhodesia in broad daylight. That battalion was part of that, like all of them of course.

MS: So what was it supposed to do?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: The Zero Hour strategy was supposed to be implemented before the end of 1979, so when the battalions were to start rolling into Rhodesia, Madubeko’s battalion was going to move to the areas around Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Road. They were supposed to stop any movement along the Falls Road, cut off supplies from Bulawayo and make sure the enemy doesn’t use that road. Our mechanized troops were then going to roll our tanks through Vic Falls Border Post. Madubeko was going to make sure that they also dealt with the Rhodesian aircrafts flying over their positions so that they don’t access Vic Falls. Just across the Zambezi River there was another battalion commanded by Jack Matiwaza, which was as heavily armed as the rest. So Madubeko was meant to stop Rhodesian reinforcements from using the Falls Road. We also had Lupane, Tsholotsho, Hwange, Binga at that time  teeming with guerilla units who were also going to continue harassing the enemy while the conventional forces were moving in to hold positions. The motorized units were also going to come from Mlungushi, which was going to be our rallying point for the conventional forces. I think as for the First Battalion under Madliwa, their role had been envisaged to cut off the Karoi Road. However, all that was not implemented because of the ceasefire agreement at Lancaster House in Britain at the end of 1979.

MS: If your plans had been implemented who was going to co-ordinate those forces?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: The now late, Rodwell Nyika was going to be in charge as he was already the frontal commander of the Northern Front deputized by Cde Gilbert Khumalo (Senator Nicholas Nkomo). In fact, Gilbert had already moved into the country and set his headquarters in the Gwampa Valley. 

MS: What happened to the battalion after the ceasefire?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: It moved to Lima Assembly Point in Bulilima where myself I became the camp commander. There at Lima they mixed with guerillas who had been operating under me in Northern Front 1 (NF1). We then had a visit to Lima by our commander, that is ZPRA, the now late, General Lookout Masuku who came with Rex Nhongo (late General Solomon Mujuru), General Peter Walls of the Rhodesian forces and the commander of the Commonwealth Monitoring Force (CMF), Major-General John Acland. With the exception of Gen Masuku, the other commanders were taken aback to find a quarter guard arranged for them. As for Generals Walls and Acland  they were shocked that there were guerillas who could do that. All the generals immediately came up with a suggestion that Madubeko should take his battalion to Harare then Salisbury for the country’s inaugural Independence Celebrations. They were joined by some colleagues from Zanla. So the Madubeko battalion was integrated into the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) intact.   

MS: When the battalion left, where did you and other comrades go to?

Col (Rtd) Tshipa: Just a few days before the battalion left for Lima, one of the battalion officers ordered a firing of some rounds as part of testing their weapons. That scared the guerillas as they had not been made aware that they would be such a drill. The guerillas thought those shooting at the camp were Rhodesians and they quickly evacuated from the camp. They went back to their former operational areas where they started living as guerillas again. It took a lot of effort to go around convincing them to return to the camp. At times we would use unorthodox means of luring them back. Some we trapped them at village parties where we would waylay them as they came to drink beer and dance the night away. Eventually Lima was closed as an Assembly Point and we were moved to Zezani Assembly Point in Beitbridge, Matabeleland South Province.