Mbuya Nehanda: Mother of our great nation
MANY blessings are derived from honouring our mothers.
Even the Holy Bible teaches us so. The Bible in Exodus 20:12 says, “Honour your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”
It is no doubt that Mbuya Nehanda, the First Chimurenga heroine, played a pivotal role in the birth of our nation.
Mbuya Nehanda was not just a female freedom fighter, she was a prophetess who gave prophecies that came to pass. Mbuya Nehanda’s great prophecy that “mapfupa angu achamuka (my bones will rise again),” became the inspiration to the liberation war fighters as they battled white supremacy.
Government’s recent decision to construct a memorial statue for Mbuya Nehanda at the intersection of Samora Machel Avenue and Julius Nyerere Way in Harare is therefore befitting.
To some of us who cherish the great works that Mbuya Nehanda did, the memorial statue is well-deserved as it will cultivate the spirit of heroism. It will also act as a symbol for the desire to attain self-actualisation and inspire the girl child.
The decision to erect a statue in honour of Mbuya Nehanda did not come from the blue.
The decision was arrived at after considering Mbuya Nehanda’s heroic rebellion against colonialism. She paid the ultimate price by being hanged on Wednesday, April 27, 1898.
Mbuya Nehanda’s statue was long overdue and it might also be prudent to declare April 27 her day in remembrance of the great works she did for this country.
That way, even those with scanty knowledge of this great heroine will want to know why she is honoured that much.
Nevertheless, Mbuya Nehanda’s statue will accord her a befitting national status that will awaken all to take note of her role in the struggle against colonial oppression.
But who was Mbuya Nehanda, some may ask. She is the woman who defied the parochial society of her time to become a leader among men.
Mbuya Nehanda, also known as Nehanda Charwe Nyakasikana, was a female Zimbabwean spirit medium born in 1840.
As one of the spiritual leaders in Zimbabwe, she was one of the front-runners of a revolt against the settler colonial rule in this country.
Mbuya Nehanda was the voice of resistance and was at the forefront in the fight against the oppressive whites in this country.
The part she played in resisting white colonial rule until her death did a lot to shape Zimbabwe’s history.
Her last words as she was being led to her dying place were not only a bold defiance of the imperialists, but also a prediction of things to come. By brutally killing Mbuya Nehanda through hanging her, the colonialists thought they had quashed the resistance of the indigenous people for good, but they were totally wrong.
Mbuya Nehanda’s words that her “bones would rise again” came to pass in 1966 when the Second Chimurenga was launched at the battle which became known as the Chinhoyi Battle.
The execution of the Second Chimurenga was hinged on her “mapfupa angu achamuka” prophecy. Those words inspired thousands to join the liberation struggle. The words also instilled a spirit of bravery and resistance in the freedom fighters.
As patriots, we should not be amused by some among us who want to water down the Mbuya Nehands’s contributions to the birth of this nation.
Most people were recently taken aback by the MDC-Alliance leader, Mr Nelson Chamisa’s utterances that building a statue for Mbuya Nehanda is like “worshipping the dead”. Speaking at his e-rally recently, Mr Chamisa said, “I heard the Government wants to build a statue of the late heroine of the First Chimurenga, Ambuya Nehanda. It shows that people are wired wrongly. This is inappropriate - to build the statue. Our (MDC) government will honour heroes, but will not worship any human beings. We will not worship the dead.”
It is disheartening to hear such a statement coming from a black Zimbabwean.
It is more painful to hear those words being uttered by someone who dreams of leading this nation one day.
Who will honour our heroes and heroines if we cannot do it ourselves?
Erecting a statue in remembrance of Mbuya
Nehanda is not tantamount to worshipping the dead as insinuated by Mr Chamisa.
Demeaning Mbuya Nehanda is the greatest error one can make.
She was our mother, our heroine. She was our liberation fighter. She was our inspiration. Surely such a person should be honoured and celebrated.
Those who view Mbuya Nehanda’s statue as “worshipping the dead” should be reminded that our former colonisers had the temerity to declare two days of holidays in July to honour Cecil John Rhodes for colonising us.
The whites honour and celebrate their heroes. Think of George Washington’s statue or monument which is located in two places — Trafalgar Square in London and at the edge of the George Washington University’s campus in Washington D.C.
The Italians are proud of Mussolini’s statue in Rome. It is clear that they honour and cherish their heroes.
We should also do the same, but some among us are still possessed with the colonial mentality.
They get angry when a heroine of Mbuya Nehanda’s stature is celebrated, but keep quiet about David Livingstone’s statue, which is in Victoria Falls, as well as Rhodes’ grave at Matopos.
The problem arising from this colonial mentality is that our heroes are dictated to us by our oppressors as we are denied ownership of our own history.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with erecting Mbuya Nehanda’s statue.
August is fast approaching and as we commemorate our fallen and living heroes and heroines, let us take time to remember Mbuya Nehanda’s great contributions in freeing us all from colonialism.