The Sunday News
AS he sits in his small makeshift study just outside his eight-roomed Ntabazinduna house, he spots a sombre but welcoming smile. He immediately rebukes this news crew for coming late for the scheduled meeting but before long he is welcoming again and goes straight into a jovial conversation.
In the study there are a couple of bookshelves with rows of all sorts of old books. Judging by their covers and dustiness, they must be old. In front of him there is a Bible and a copy of the Chronicle which every once in a while he meticulously studies, constantly reminding this news crew that he was a newspaper vendor for 21 years, hence he was more of a journalist than anyone else.
He then brings out a counter book made into a register of sorts and immediately goes into his life story.
This is 87-year-old Reverend Siboniso Bafana Nxumalo.
The reverend was ordained on 26 February 1964 at the age of 36 at the United Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa. He was stationed at David Livingstone Mission before being moved to Bulawayo.
During his life as a minister of the church he was chairperson of the Ministers’ fraternity for 14 years and also was chairperson of the Christian Council of Zimbabwe (Southern Region), again for 14 years — in both instances it was a stretch from 1978 to 1992 when he retired.
However, it is not his life as a reverend that he talks about with glee — it is only three years of his life that will always remain embraced in his heart.
These are the years 1979 to 1981. These are the years when Rev Nxumalo made a daring but huge contribution to the country’s history.
During these years he used his position as chairperson of the Christian Council of Zimbabwe (Southern Region) to source food and feed thousands of guerillas who returned from war at his Njube church.
So dedicated was he to the job that he not only fed the returning freedom fighters but he held daily sermons with them, counselling them and helping them to fit into society after years of being in the bush and gruesome experiences.
When he talks of this period, he spots a permanent broad smile showing the register of all freedom fighters who were receiving rations from his church.
“When the freedom fighters came they were wrongfully being referred to as refugees but eventually they got the rightful tag of being war returnees. I personally took it upon myself to source food for them which I then disbursed to them. The rations I gave them included mealie-meal, cooking oil, beans and kapenta fish.
“I saw the importance of this because I noted that these people were returning from a protracted war with no source of income; the only job they knew was fighting but now they were coming back to the larger society hence the need for someone’s help to put something on their tables to help feed them,” said Rev Nxumalo.
He said in total he managed to serve over
3 000 war returnees at his Njube church and close to 100 in Ntabazinduna.
“Some of those that we served were either injured or crippled in the war hence we had to be extra careful in the manner we handled them. It was a difficult time but it took guts and worse still I was committed because I was doing it for my country, it was the best possible service I could do as contribution to our freedom.
“These people also required a great deal of spiritual support. I remember their language was very coarse and they found it difficult to cohabit with the larger populace because of their experience at war, which is why I braved on and even held sermons every day in the morning with them. To this day, I meet some of these former freedom fighters and they thank me for my service,” said Rev Nxumalo.
As he continues to reflect on his life, Rev Nxumalo also reveals another accolade which very few might have known about — in the 80s he was the personal chaplain to the late Vice- President Dr Joshua Nkomo.
He proudly shows us a portrait of himself being inducted as the moderator for Matabeleland in his church in 1981. In the background, Dr Nkomo can be seen, all smiles, applauding the induction together with another Zanu-PF stalwart Cde Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu.
“I know that a lot of people do not know this, but I was the personal chaplain to Dr Nkomo. He was also a close friend of mine and was of great support during my job, feeding the freedom fighters. I don’t remember him at one point breaking a smile; he was a great man, who listened to everyone and respected everyone.
“It is, however, unfortunate that very few people know the role I played during that period but I am no person who would go around seeking recognition. I regard myself as more of a community leader. I was born to lead; it is in me and I am very proud of it,” said Rev Nxumalo.
He, however, reveals that his lifetime dream is to one day meet President Mugabe in person.
Sunday News also managed to interview Rev Nxumalo’s daughter, Sibonile, who was only 16 when her father was feeding the freedom fighters.
She remembered that during this period they would almost always wake up with a stranger in their house, who their parents would simply say were either their brother or sister.
“We learnt a lot of things during this period. Our father would insist that we assist in the disbursing of the rations. We would also handle the administration side of things, which I think is the reason why most of us in the family grew up to be administrators.
“However, when we look back at this period we do not regret anything but instead we remain proud because I believe this was our contribution to the liberation struggle. This period taught us to accept a lot of things in life and instead of regarding these war returnees as soldiers we took them as our elder brothers and sisters,” said Ms Nxumalo.
Rev Nxumalo is a father of eight children, with five surviving. His wife passed away in the year 2 000. He has 13 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. And for a man of 87 years, Rev Nxumalo is still fit, with only a slight hearing problem. He occasionally takes a walk around Ntabazinduna township and says his hobbies are reading and researching.
Asked on his secret to long life, Rev Nxumalo said: “This is just God given, I pray every time and I love everyone around me, as I said I am a community person, I believe in working for and with the people.”
As the interview ends, Rev Nxumalo insists on a closing prayer.
