daglous masveta
Online Reporter
The memorial service for the late historian and writer Pathisa Nyathi has started at the Bulawayo Amphitheater where hundreds of Bulawayo residents have converged to pay their last respects to the renowned author before he is buried at the Lady Stanley Cemetery.
On the podium is close confidant Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Reverend Paul Damasane said Nyathi wrote 20 books that articulated the history of the liberation war against minority rule from the British colonisers, the highest number of publications authored by any writer in Zimbabwe.
The late Nyathi was born in Kezi, Matabeleland South Province, on 10 July 1951 and passed away on 2 November 2024 after a long illness.
He will be buried next to his wife Elizabeth who passed in 2016.
The late historian, according to Reverend Damasane, chose not to re-marry but to focus on his family and his writings.
Among those in the crowd to bid farewell to the celebrated writer at the Bulawayo Amphitheater are the Bulawayo Provincial Minister Judith Ncube, Bulawayo Mayor Councillor David Coltart, Nkayi Chief Dakamela among other dignitaries.
The late Nyathi wrote over 70 books, which Bulawayo Mayor Councillor David Coltart said must be readily available in all council owned libraries for future generations.
He is survived by three children – Sikhanyisile, Butho and Fikile.
Pathisa Nyathi laid to rest
THE late historian and author Pathisa Nyathi was laid to rest at the Lady Stanley Cemetery in Bulawayo on Wednesday afternoon.
He was 73.
Nyathi passed away last Saturday after a long illness.
He was a highly respected author who wrote over 70 publications and was survived by three children – Sikhanyisile, Butholezwe and Fikile.
His wife Elizabeth passed away in 2016.
A funeral service was held at the Bulawayo Amphitheatre and was attended by hundreds of mourners, among them Bulawayo Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Judith Ncube, Bulawayo Mayor Councillor David Coltart, Deputy Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Reverend Paul Damasane and traditional chiefs, among other dignitaries.
Reverend Damasane said the late Nyathi wrote 20 books that articulated the history of the liberation war against minority rule from the British colonisers, the highest number of publications authored by any writer in Zimbabwe.
The daughter of the late revered nationalist Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo, Mrs Thandiwe Nkomo Ibrahim, described Nyathi as a researcher par excellence who played a significant role in researching the history around the Pupu Battle of National Resistance against British colonialism.
When the Joshua Mqabuko Foundation was established in 2004, the late Nyathi was tasked with researching the life of the late Father Zimbabwe.
