Sunday Leisure Reporter
This year Bulawayo celebrates its 125th anniversary while the world commemorates May Day under the theme “Uniting Workers for Social and Economic Advancement”.
The Bulawayo Cultural Affairs Office and Nhimbe Trust are lobbying the Bulawayo City Council to declare 1 June the day of Bulawayo.
The beginning of June is the day Bulawayo attained town status. This year the city celebrates 125 years.
Nhimbe Trust executive director Josh Nyapimbi described the proposed Bulawayo Day as “a day to promote everything ‘Bulawayoan’, of celebrating the diversity of local cultural expressions and heritage.”
He said Nhimbe Trust was calling on cultural people of Bulawayo to step forward and partner in the process of lobbying for the Day.
“This will keep Bulawayo’s cultural palette alive and vibrant in the region with the proposed annual celebration on the first day of June, starting from 2020. It goes without saying that all artistes working in Bulawayo would welcome such an annual celebration that is an acknowledgement of their contribution to both socio-economic development and the diversity of cultural expressions. Against a backdrop of economic turbulence, Nhimbe Trust is working to consult and engage with artistes and other stakeholders, both local and abroad, for valuable engagement and direction on collaborative efforts that can be pursued to support sustainable livelihoods of artistes and cultural professionals under decent work conditions that favour equity, social security and sector resilience,” added Nyapimbi.
Writer Virginia Phiri said: “I am happy to give a hand in whichever way I can to achieve our goal. Thanking you for taking on this great task. Umkhulu lo Msebenzi. Sisonke.”
Multi-faceted artist Lucky Moyo said: “I fully support this vision and I think it’s long overdue. My proposal would be that you [engage] as many of our leaders and champions in the arts and culture sector in its broadest term.”
Poet and writer Albert Nyathi said “Ukhohlwe abe Sotho, lamma Xhosa lama Tshangani. (You have forgotten people of Sotho, Xhosa and Shangani origin). Good idea, absolutely. 1 June, singazigqokela amabhetshu (we can wear our traditional regalia!). I like the idea.”
Jazz and gospel artiste Dudu Manhenga, said, in a nutshell, “Very good idea!”