The unifying power of totemism
for all who put the Zimbabwe interest first.
“I want to thank my brother from Ghana Baffour Ankomah and his wife for coming here to mourn with us. He was the first editor to stand for our cause when the rest of the international media was very hostile to us when we took our land back,” he said.
“Baffour was the first to say ‘Mugabe is Right’ on the front cover of the New African magazine. This became our rallying cry for Zanu-PF and Zimbabwe in defence of the land reform. His wife is the one who sew the African clothing designs both for me and my wife. I love African print and I want to say thank you to you my brother and your wife.”
PS Charamba also poured glowing praise to SARDC founding director Phyllis Johnson for his unwavering support to the African liberation struggle and for working closely with his wife Idaishe in the last few months before her death.
“I want to thank this Canadian girl who has an African heart. There has been great relations between Phyllis and the struggle processes . . . I want to thank you.”
The list of takeaways from Charamba’s speech is quite long.
His commitment to his family, his drive to support the less fortunate and his ability to interact with people from all rank and file, shows the softer and unusually inspirational side of Mhofu.
The outpouring of remembrances that went well beyond normal courtesies and the scores of people that attended the funeral all show, that PS Charamba fully connects with the people despite the sharp differences that exist with comrades in the information and media fraternity.
I respect the conviction and self-determination he has displayed throughout his remarkable life as he broke barriers, defied expectations and stood firmly for what he believes in. He is a repository of knowledge and likes bantering with the Queen’s language and yet he remains undivorced from his mother tongue.
Whenever, he interacts with people, he teaches research, encourages eloquence and respect for the views of others. Anyone who gets the chance to argue and debate with him, can benefit immensely from the positive impact of his debating skills.
A wordsmith with passion for detail. His passion lights up to new ideas. Ideas are the buzz words of his life. If anything, his wife’s funeral had so many life lessons.
From Charamba’s speech and testimonies given by people from all walks of life, the little but enduring takeaways from the funeral are — Let us learn to like each other, to be friends, to celebrate and enjoy our differences and to do so on the basis of common sense, respect and tolerance for each other and everyone else, as equals.
But above everything else, the love of ourselves as Zimbabweans and as Africans is key to our survival.
This was a funeral of a sister, a mother, a wife, an aunt and a mentor and our first thoughts are inevitably with you, Charamba on the loss of your dear wife. His wife had a big heart that enabled her to reach out in quite unexpected ways to both to her children, relatives and friends.
Idaishe has bequeathed to us a better place to live. For those around her, she created space to live in relationship and not out of relationship. And, in memory of the woman who helped transform his life, Charamba says he will always treasure Idaishe and pledged to keep on doing what she was doing to bind the Charamba and Chengu families together. He said he has confidence that her sterling record of accomplishment will inspire future generations. May God bless the memory of Idaishe Olivia Chengu Charamba. — Zimpapers Syndication