Harare (New Ziana)- Nationalist, higher education administrator and scholar of high repute, Prof Ngwabi Mulunge Bhebe, was on Saturday laid to rest at the National Heroes Acre in the capital.
Prof Bhebe passed away last Friday in Gweru after losing a battle with diabetes.
Addressing mourners at the National Heroes Acre, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said the nation has been robbed of a patriot and nationalist par-excellence, a long-serving higher education administrator, a historian and scholar of high repute and global standing.
“The late National Hero, Professor Bhebe, was a long-serving intellectual and academic. His rich history is a record of merit and immense success, particularly in the field of higher education. We credit to his name numerous frameworks, which have laid a firm foundation and contributed to the sound administration of our higher education sector,” he said.
“The calibre and professionalism of the students and staff that went under the tutelage of the late Professor Bhebe are a testimony that “Tumbare” as he was fondly known, was a great mentor and wise teacher. A considerable number are now serving in senior positions within the administration of our institutions of higher learning, in Government and beyond,” he said.
President Mnangagwa said as the founding Vice Chancellor of Midlands State University, Prof Bhebe’s name became synonymous with that dynamic national institution.
“I recall with fond memories how the late National Hero Cde R. C. Hove, myself, Professor Bhebe and later, the late National Hero, Cde C. G. Msipa conceptualised the establishment of Midlands State University. I remember the vigour and intensity of planning debates which usually took place through obstacles to author the founding Charter and the successful establishment of the Institution.
“As a result of the astute leadership of the late Prof. Bhebe, MSU now occupies a place of pride among the national and regional higher education ecosystem, with thousands of distinguished alumni,”said President Mnangagwa.
Beyond the academia, Professor Bhebe also played his part to advance the prosecution of the war of liberation as he was part of nationalist academics based in regional universities who never saw their stay in foreign lands as an excuse to avoid responsibilities to the raging armed liberation struggle unfolding back home.
Through mobilisation of diplomatic support and material resources, Prof Bhebe was part of a student corps that were instrumental in advancing the objectives of the liberation struggle under the banner of the Patriotic Front.
His contemporaries in the struggle include the late National Heroes Professor Phineas Makhurane; Dr Stanislaus Gorerazvo Mudenge and Professor Walter Kamba.
“These and other renowned nationalist academics committed their time, skills and resources to the sustenance of our struggle for independence. They balanced their quest for academic excellence with the weighty obligation demanded of them before and after independence,” President Mnangagwa said.
“They never used their intellectual and academic prowess to denigrate our motherland. This is how it should be. I challenge our people, especially the youth, to always take pride in being Zimbabwean and being African, no matter how educated they are. Our intellectual and academic prowess must be deployed to advance our national development agenda and to lift our people out of poverty,” he said.
He said Professor Bhebe was a highly acclaimed author with numerous books, journal articles and presentations on diverse themes. Among these were perspectives on traditional religion and Christianity; African biographies; the nexus between the land question and nationalist struggles; as well as conflict prevention and reconciliation.
He wrote an insightful biography on the late Vice President Muzenda, entitled, Simon Vengayi Muzenda and the Struggle and Liberation of Zimbabwe (2004) and another biography on the late national hero, Benjamin Burombo.
In terms of university administration, Professor Bhebe served in various portfolios, rising to Pro-Vice Chancellor at the University of Zimbabwe and ultimately the founding Vice Chancellor of the Midlands State University, in 1999.
With him at the helm, the university was established primarily as a research-led and solution-driven entity.
The late Prof Bhebe will also be remembered for flying Zimbabwe’s flag high, following his numerous accolades and recognition, including as Zimbabwe’s representative on the UNESCO Executive Board; Council Member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities; Alternate Member of the Governing Board of the Association of African Universities and founding and Executive Member of the Southern African Regional Universities Association.
New Ziana
