MUGABE SUDDENLY CHANGED BURIAL PLACE AFTER JULIAS MALEMA VISIT.

Harare, ZIMBABWE:

South African opposition Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema’s visit to Zimbabwe could have influenced former First Lady Grace to change her mind about former President Robert Mugabe’s burial place, Deputy information minister Energy Mutodi has said.

EFF leader Julius Malema and the party treasurer general Leigh-Ann Mathys visited Grace Mugabe in Harare, Zimbabwe, to offer their condolences on the passing of Robert Mugabe. 
Image: Twitter/EFF.

Malema was in the country two weeks ago to pay his condolences following Mugabe’s death early last month.

He met Grace for almost three hours before declaring President Mnangagwa needed to respect Mugabe’s wishes.

EFF leader Julius Malema with Grace Mugabe at former Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe's 'Blue Roof' home.
Image: Twitter/EFF.

Before his death in Singapore on September 6, Mugabe had told his family he did not want to be buried at the National Heroes Acre, a North Korea-styled hilltop shrine in Harare.

He informed the family he did not want President Emmerson Mnangagwa to preside over his burial and pontificate over his dead body.

“We also realised that after the Malema visit, that’s when we heard the change of mind. So it could be other people then coming up with inputs to influence the president’s place of burial.” 

Mutodi told NewZimbabwe.com in an interview.

“However, to us, burial is burial. We are not very much concerned about that. What we are happy with is that as a country, we had time to share with the former president.”

Mutodi added: 

“After initially agreeing to burial at the national shrine, the family then changed tact and claimed the former President himself had requested that he be buried in Zvimba.”

Mugabe was subsequently buried at his Kutama rural home, leaving the ruling Zanu PF party angry.

Malema paid tribute to Grace describing her as a strong woman and urged her to protect her late husband’s legacy.

“She serves as an inspiration to a lot of us and that she must protect President Mugabe’s legacy with everything against any form of opportunism which want to ride behind his legacy even when they tormented him to the last day,” 

Malema told journalists after meeting Grace.

Government has since stopped the construction of a mausoleum in which Mugabe was set to be buried.

The late Robert Mugabe’s nephew, Leo, and some close relatives snubbed the former president’s burial in Zvimba last Saturday after being accused by ex-first lady Grace Mugabe of taking bribes from government to ensure the late leader is buried at the National Heroes Acre against his wishes.

Former Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's nephews, Leo Mugabe(red shirt) and Philip Chiyangwa, are consoled by relatives at their uncle's rural homestead in Kutama, Zimbabwe, September 7, 2019.
Image: Reuters.

Grace also accused long-time family friends such as former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe governor Gideon Gono of being sent by the state and acting to curry favour with Mnangagwa.

Despite negotiating on Mugabe’s behalf at the height of the 2017 military coup that catapulted Mnangagwa to power, Gono did not attend the burial as well.

Former Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) governor Gideon Gono(center) with Robert Mugabe and Grace Mugabe in a photo taken on Tuesday 21 November, 2017 from the “Blue Roof” mansion that belongs to the former First Family. The picture was taken just after Mugabe had resigned in a letter to the Speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda.

Family sources told the Zimbabwe Independent this week that Grace unleashed her wrath on Leo during a family meeting held on Saturday morning hours before the burial.

Family members revealed Grace launched a verbal tirade on Mugabe’s nephew and other relatives, accusing them of betraying the family and taking bribes from government agents, along with Zvimba chiefs, to influence the family’s decision. The former first lady labelled Leo and other relatives “sell-outs”.

Leo, according to family members, stormed out of the meeting, trailed by a number of family members, who included some chiefs from the clan.

Leo, Mugabe’s late sister Sabina’s son and family spokesperson during negotiations between the government and family, confirmed the fallout in an interview with the Independent this week.

He, however, denied ever taking bribes from government agents.
“We had a fall-out on Saturday around 11am before the burial. We fell out because she said I took a bribe from Mnangagwa to influence the decision to bury my uncle at the Heroes Acre. It is not true to accuse chiefs of taking bribes. Those are some of the accusations,” 
Leo said.

“It’s normal to fall out. It’s not new really because I don’t tolerate nonsense. My uncle knew that I would argue and put across my point. I am a principled person. Can you imagine I did not eventually attend my uncle’s funeral.”

Leo also said some family members expressed disappointment during the meeting, accusing Grace and a small cast of family members, who included her children and former mines minister Walter Chidhakwa, of making a unilateral decision to take Mugabe’s body to Zvimba.

“The extended family was then left out, but it’s normal in every family. It should have been properly communicated to others so that people don’t feel they are being pushed out,”
Leo said.

“This is why the chiefs never showed up. There was one chief there. I think the situation could have been handled better. Certainly it could have been handled better.

“The bigger council should have been informed because it is the one that had gone to President Mnangagwa. It would have gone back to the president to say stop constructing the mausoleum because of the new plans.

“So that communication was not there, it was very poor. We regret that and personally I would apologies to the chiefs to say, we are sorry for the miscommunication, it was uncalled for.

“I don’t think an apology has gone to the chiefs. It’s even seen in the accusations that are now coming to me, to the effect that we sold out and we were bought by Mnangagwa. It is nonsense, total nonsense.

“Nobody was bought. Nobody was given money. Nobody was coerced into taking my uncle to the shrine.”

A close family friend told the Independent that Grace was consulted throughout the process before government announced that Mugabe would be buried at the National Heroes Acre.

“There were so many turns and twists. The Heroes Acre place was chosen and rituals were performed by Chief Zvimba (who also did not attend the burial), Robert Jr, Chatunga, Leo, Justice minister Ziyambi Ziyambi, representing government and Mnangagwa, and Ministry of Home Affairs officials.

“The designs of the Mausoleum were approved by Grace and relatives. Permission to construct the mausoleum came from Grace, only to change her mind later and leave everyone in the dark,” 
he said.

After agreeing that he should be buried at the National Heroes Acre, Mugabe’s family made an about turn last Thursday when it took a decision to honour his last wish by burying him in Zvimba.