The Sunday News
Feature Tinomuda Chakanyuka
A Ndebele adage has it that “umthwentwe uhlaba usamila”. Close to this saying is yet another one which says “inkomo ikhula lamanono ayo”. There could be few if any English equivalents to these two intrinsically deep sayings, which basically imply that a person’s potential can be seen when they are still young.
If there is one person who has unequivocally lived up to these adages and could today be referred as an embodiment of what the two sayings mean, it is President Mugabe.
Those who had the privilege of knowing President Mugabe in his younger days, before he became the icon most of us now know him to be, are not surprised by the milestones Gushungo has achieved.
Born on February 21 in 1924 in Kutama, President Mugabe turns 91 this year and as has become tradition, the country marks his birthday with pomp and fanfare, celebrating his unparalleled legacy.
People who shared experiences with President Mugabe testify that he conducted himself with strict discipline and was a hard worker who was unrelenting when pursuing his set targets.
President Mugabe started reaping the fruits of his hard work, discipline and commitment after graduating from St Francis Xavier College as a teacher and went on to teach at Hope Fountain Mission in Matabeleland South Province as a young English Language teacher.
One of his students at the school who testifies of the astuteness, sharpness and great potential that he possessed in his younger days is former Matabeleland South Governor, Cde Angeline Masuku who was 13 at the time she was in the President’s class.
Today, she says she is not surprised that her English teacher in Standard 5 has become the world icon he is as greatness was always written in his conduct as a young professional.
Those who believe in predestination might contend that President Mugabe’s path for success was pre-carved, while those from the opposing school will posit that the man from Zvimba carved his path to greatness.
Whichever way one chooses to interpret the trajectories that President Mugabe followed on his way to the top, the fact remains that his potential for greatness exuded in his early days as a principled young teacher.
Known as Teacher Ngwenya back in his days at Hope Fountain, President Mugabe’s leadership qualities always showed as he stood out as one of the best and most inspirational teachers at the school.
He was called Teacher Ngwenya in reference to his totem Gushungo which is known as Ngwenya in the southern parts of the country.
Cde Masuku remembers her English teacher as a strict disciplinarian, who, however, did not employ any physical methods to achieve this end, but opted for frank talk and leading by example, attributes he still possesses to this day.
Honesty, exemplariness, hard work, commitment to set goals and an insatiable quest for success coupled with many other rare attributes made Teacher Ngwenya stand out among his colleagues and the same qualities have distinguished him as a great leader in Africa and beyond.
“I was still young when Teacher Ngwenya taught me but I still have vivid memories of the kind of a teacher he was. He was the kind of a teacher who when he stood in front of you, you would be assured that you will come out with something. He was that kind of a teacher who wanted his students to have confidence in the self. He wasn’t short of confidence himself and always did his best to ensure that attribute rubbed on to his students.
“He was such a good teacher and a leader such that everyone wanted to be in his class. Hope Fountain was such a big school and there were a lot of teachers there but Teacher Ngwenya stood out as an exceptional character.
“You could tell that there was something special about him such that when today I look at all the successes he has recorded I’m not surprised at all. I just look back at his days as my teacher and say to myself this man was destined for greatness. It’s because of his innate ability to lead,” said Cde Masuku.
“He had a positive impact on almost everyone he had contact with. He was quiet but somehow in his quietness you could see intelligence. That inspired us as young students and we all aspired to be as astute as he was. He was principled and always urged us to be principled and committed to our school work, something which I thank him for because it had a positive impact on my life.
“It’s because of him that most of us chose to take up leadership. He instilled in us a spirit of self-belief which I think influenced my decision to join politics. A lot of people gained from his inspiration,” said Cde Masuku.
Cde Masuku later worked with President Mugabe around 1987 when she was in the integration committee during efforts to broker the Unity Accord deal between the country’s main political protagonists, Zanu-PF and PF Zapu.
“During one of the meetings he called me to the high table and I was so terrified. I went up and knelt before Cde (Simon) Muzenda. Cde Muzenda told me that President Mugabe was the one who had called me, I went before him and he reminded me that I was his former student.
“He asked me what I was doing, and I told her that I was helping women start self-help projects. He then asked if I wanted to work in Government and I told him that I was okay helping people. He said I was doing a good job. At that time a lot of people were positioning themselves for Government posts and they felt I had wasted a golden opportunity to get into Government,” she said.
“After I was elected into the women’s league executive, that is when I started working with President Mugabe closely. It struck me that he had not changed from his days as my teacher. He still had the attributes of the good leader I knew him to be at Hope Fountain.”
Cde Masuku said President Mugabe’s priority had always been education even during his days as a teacher as he always urged his students to take school seriously.
She urged the present generation to always cherish President Mugabe’s vision of ensuring that every Zimbabwean had the opportunity to access quality education.
“Education was always and will always remain his priority. When people celebrate President Mugabe’s legacy, they must not overlook the achievements he has made in ensuring education for all. He never had it easy himself but he has laid the path for generations after him. Every school in the country now has computers, today we talk of dozens of state and private universities. That is all part of his legacy that we should celebrate,” she said.
As the country is going to mark President Mugabe’s 91st birthday in Victoria Falls, his legacy in education should not be understated. The path that he travelled in his life should serve as an inspiration to youths. The 21st February Movement celebrations are much more than just pomp and fanfare, but celebration of an icon’s birthday. As such these celebrations should serve as a reminder of the present generation’s duty to preserve the legacy of the icon.
President Mugabe’s life story should serve as an inspiration for today’s youths and his rare attributes should serve as a barometer against which one measures their patriotism.
