Norton independent Member of Parliament Temba Mliswa says it would have been prudent for the remains of Mbuya Nehanda including her skull to be repatriated along with the others before the country thinks of erecting a statue in her honour.
He believes erecting a statue in her honour without regaining possession of her remains would be of little significance.
“It’s important the statue of Mbuya Nehanda has arrived, however the question is, what about her skull? Her remains need to be repatriated along with the others.
“Maybe it would’ve been better to regain possession of her remains before erecting the statue in her honour,” says Mliswa.
President Emmeson Mnangagwa is today expected to unveil Mbuya Nehanda’s statue in the capital city.
Meanwhile, in a few years ago, a Zimbabwean delegation was dispatched to the United Kingdom to repatriate the heads of Mbuya Nehanda, Sekuru Kaguvi, at the invitation of the British government to start the repatriation process.
The team located 13 heads among them, those of the two most prominent First Chimurenga icons, however the remains are yet to be returned.
Nehanda and Kaguvi were captured and executed by the British during the height of the country’s occupation by settlers in the 19th century.
The heads are believed to have been taken to Britain and displayed as war trophies.
Apparently, 41 years after Zimbabweans reclaimed their independence from Britain, the heads of the pioneers of the liberation war are yet to be brought home.
-Zwnews
