Dalphine Tagwireyi
A Zimbabwean chief presiding over a village court has ordered the reburial of Robert Mugabe’s remains at the National Heroes Acre in Harare.
The ruling follows Grace Mugabe’s failure to show up to court last Thursday in Zvimba, having been accused of burying her late husband at his homestead, breaking the laws of local customs.
Mugabe was buried in the courtyard of his home in the village of Kutama in 2019, which Chief Zvimba deemed to be in breach of traditional laws concerning the burial of leaders.
Mugabe’s widow, who is reportedly residing in Singapore, was sentenced with a fine of five goats and one cow, and has subsequently been advised to appeal the court’s decision before 1 July.
Mugabe’s nephew, Leo Mugabe, scoffed at the outcome and stated that the family would ensure that his uncle’s wishes were kept.
“Listen, as a family we did not see anything unusual about the burial site, besides, what type of court preys on a grieving widow and does not summon Mugabe’s relatives to answer for whatever they claim to question?” he asked.
Mugabe, who ruled Zimbabwe for 37 years with an iron fist, was never shy of the limelight. Even in death, Zimbabwe’s longest serving president continues to invoke a bone of contention amongst the living.
It has been reported that he did not wish to be buried according to custom, in Heroes Acre, because he feared that those who ousted him from power would seek to conduct unwanted traditional rituals on his remains.
