dyton mupawaenda
Africa Moyo-Deputy News Editor
FORMER Vice President Phelekezela Report Mphoko (84), who died in India yesterday, has been declared a national hero in recognition of his service to his country before and after Independence.
He had been unwell for a long time.
In his condolence message last night, President Mnangagwa described Cde Mphoko as a veteran of the liberation struggle who selflessly contributed to national development.
The President also said Cde Mphoko’s appointment as Vice President of Zimbabwe in 2014 was “both deserved and consistent with his sacrifice and long service to his people, who today grieve and mourn his untimely departure”.
“I learnt this (yesterday) afternoon with a deep sense of grief and sadness of the passing on of our former Vice President, Ambassador Report Phelekezela Mphoko, after a long illness,” he said.
“A veteran of our liberation struggle, Cde Mphoko’s political and military history coincides with the early days of militant nationalism against white settler colonialism, which later morphed into the armed liberation struggle of which he was among its early architects, brave fighters and crop of formative and outstanding commanders.
“With his sad departure, our nation has lost yet another stalwart of the liberation struggle whose contribution to our hard-won Independence can hardly be overstated.”
Trained in many countries, including in the then Soviet Union, Cde Mphoko specialised in logistics, an onerous and sensitive responsibility which ensured huge consignments of assortments of arms of war were moved to different bases in the rear, and to the war front inside the country, in order to maintain the momentum of the armed liberation struggle and to exert ever mounting pressure on the settler regime until final victory.
President Mnangagwa said Cde Mphoko, who was a versatile cadre, would later join ZAPU’s liaison department, a role which took him to Maputo, Mozambique, where the then ZANU was head-quartered.
“We worked very closely with him, in the process laying groundwork and anticipating the eventual convergence of the two liberation movements into the Patriotic Front.
“It was this early exposure to diplomacy, moulded in the crucible of the liberation struggle, which prepared him for his long career in the diplomatic service after our Independence.
“It was an illustrious career which peaked with his appointment as Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to various key countries, including the Russian Federation. His appointment as Vice President of our nation was both deserved and consistent with his sacrifice and long service to his people who today grieve and mourn his untimely departure,” said the President.
After his service in Government, Cde Mphoko continued to work with the party, including lending his unqualified support to ZANU PF’s most resounding victory in the August 2023 harmonised elections.
“On behalf of ZANU PF, Government, my family and on my own behalf, I wish to express my deepest, heartfelt condolences to the Mphoko Family, especially to Mrs (Laurinda) Mphoko and the children, on this their saddest loss,” said President Mnangagwa.
He said as the Mphoko family goes through the motions of grief, they should derive solace from the knowledge that the nation mourns and stands with them in this darkest hour, always recalling with awe and admiration the huge and selfless contribution which Cde Mphoko made towards Zimbabwe’s Independence and subsequent development after 1980.
“In recognition of his meritorious role of service to his country, both before and after Independence, the ZANU PF Politburo has unanimously decided and agreed to celebrate and immortalise his life of sacrifice by according him the Status of national hero. May his dear soul rest in eternal peace,” said the President.
Cde Mphoko was born on June 11, 1940 at Gwizane, in Bubi District of Matabeleland North.
He attended David Livingstone Memorial School in Ntabazinduna and Mzilikazi High School in Bulawayo.
Between 1959 and 1960, he enrolled at the Tsholotsho Agricultural Breeding and Experimental School where he did cropping and animal husbandry.
After school, Cde Mphoko was employed by Dunlop Rhodesia Ltd between 1962-63 and was a workers’ representative in the molding section.
In 1963, Cde Mphoko was arrested for political violence after lashing out at a Rhodesian police officer who had set his dog on him and fellow youths.
He was sentenced to three years in jail and sent to Khami Prison, before appealing against the sentence and was granted bail awaiting a retrial.
In the same year, 1963, he was a delegate at the Cold Comfort Farm People’s Caretaker Council Congress.
The congress created a Special Affairs Department and decided on an external wing of ZAPU that would plan and direct the armed struggle.
Under the Special Affairs programme, Cde Mphoko along with Albert Nxele, Walter Mbambo and Sam Dumaza Mpofu, were selected by ZAPU leader Cde Joshua Nkomo to go for military training.
On April 4, 1964, while awaiting a retrial, Cde Mphoko left Zimbabwe as part of a group of six and received military training in the Soviet Union between May 1964 and February 1965.
In March 1965, he created the first military command structure, the military planning committee, to plan and direct the armed struggle.
Cde Mphoko was one of the first seven commanders commissioned by the revolution and by the political leadership to recruit, train and command Zimbabweans into a revolution for the liberation of Zimbabwe.
In 1967, he became a member of the Joint Military Command in charge of logistics and supply in the ANC/ZAPU Alliance.
He commanded the Joint Military rehearsals for the Wankie operations at Dan Nang base, Luthuli Camp, which included South African freedom fighters Joe Modise and Chris Hani who was the Commander of the Detachment, and others.
In 1967 and 1968, he operated in Sipolilo (now Guruve) together with Modise, Abraham Nkiwane, Dumiso Dabengwa and others.
In 1976, he was a delegate at the formation of the Patriotic Front, in Maputo, Mozambique, with JZ Moyo, George Silundika and Joseph Msika.
In 1977, Cde Mphoko attended the OAU Adhoc Committee of Foreign Ministers in Luanda Angola with Cdes Joseph Msika, and George Silundika.
In 1979, he attended the Lancaster House peace talks as a military delegate.
VP Mphoko was in 1980 appointed as a Special Envoy for Dr Joshua Nkomo, to President Samora Machel of Mozambique, King Sobhuza II of Swaziland, Chief Leabuwa Jonathan of Lesotho, President Fidel Castro of Cuba, and Eric Honneker of the German Democratic Republic.
He served in the sub-committee that designed Zimbabwe national flag.
In 1981, Cde Mphoko worked in the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare as Deputy Director for Demobilisation.
In 1987, he was transferred to the diplomatic service and, with junior stints in Mozambique as liaison officer and in 1996 appointed liaison officer to Austria, also covering the United Nations Drug Control Programme and the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty Organisation.
Between 1996 and 1999, VP Mphoko did advanced courses in semen collection, artificial insemination and embryo transfer at the Institute of Genetics, Austria.
In 2002, he was appointed Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to Botswana, before becoming Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to the Russian Federation. In 2010, he was appointed Zimbabwe’s Ambassador to South Africa.
On December 10, 2014, he was appointed Vice President by the late former President Cde Robert Mugabe alongside Cde Mnangagwa, who is now President.
The late former President Mugabe assigned Cde Mphoko the ministerial portfolio of National Healing, Peace and Reconciliation.
He was sworn in as Vice President on December 12, 2014.
On July 6, 2015, he assigned Cde Mphoko the responsibility for coordination and implementation of policy.
He ceased to be Vice President in November 2017 when the Second Republic was ushered into power.
Cde Mphoko is survived by his wife Laurinda, a Mozambican national, and they had three children together, daughters Sikhumbuzo, Siduduzo and son, Siqokoqela.
He was also blessed with three grandchildren.
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