Bruce Ndlovu, Sunday Life Reporter
THROUGH time, the name Nyongolo has meant different things to different people.
To many Zimbabweans before the bell of independence tolled, the Nyongolo name signalled hope and defiance in equal measure.
A whisper of that name, when the boot of colonial oppression was levelled mercilessly against the necks of freedom-seeking Zimbabweans, was a glimmer of hope, a ray of light at the end of the long and dark tunnel that was colonialism.
To those siding with colonial authorities however, the name Nyongolo was a very uncomfortable thorn to their flesh. So elusive was this revolutionary that tales and myths were created just to make sense of how he regularly seemed to give his well-informed and resourced opponents the slip even when it seemed he was cornered.
He could turn into a nimble cat and slither through jail bars when he was caught, some tales suggested.
However, before it was synonymous with revolution and defiance, to the people of St Joseph’s (Semokwe) in Kezi, the name Nyongolo was widely known for tea. Way back when Joshua was still a strutting, thrill seeking young lad whose days were spent tending to his family’s livestock, his father, Joseph Nyongolo Nkomo, spent time introducing villagers to the intricacies of drinking tea properly.
“Joseph Nyongolo Nkomo, apart from being the father of Father Zimbabwe Dr. Joshua Nkomo’s family had a special place at the Mission,” recalls the current Parish Priest, Father Innocent Ndlovu.
“Mr. Nyongolo Nkomo had a good rapport with the Catholic Missionaries at St. Joseph. He established an earliest Tea Room just by the southern gate of the Mission.
Nyongolo was a visionary and pathfinder in this regard as nobody in the rural area of St. Joseph Mission had ever thought of setting up a Tea Room or the Guest House, he modernised the concept of serving meals particularly tea among the locals who were used to be given tea free of charge – Umuphe Ahambe! More so, tea was a preserve of adults or to be more precise of the head of the family.
The late Vice President Dr Joshua Nkomo
Now children take tea probably more than adults, at times disregarding table etiquette that govern consumption of meals and drinking of tea. Good manners refer to the manner in which something is done. It denotes the mode of action or procedure and very often good manners become vivid during meals or tea time or refreshment moments!”
While some might think the idea of drinking tea “properly” as inconsequential, to Father Ndlovu, the simple gesture of showing villagers how to sip tea without making any disconcerting noises, is an example of the service the Nyongolo family has granted to the St Joseph’s community for decades.
“Many people do not know that when drinking tea, they should not blow over it in order to cool it. Just take a sip at a time do not whistle or make noise when sipping tea or coffee. Avoid drinking tea or coffee from the saucer.
If you have to cough or sneeze during tea time or meal time, turn your head away from the table and use a handkerchief or put your left hand / elbow in front of your mouth. Accordingly, the people of St Joseph Mission are very grateful to the Nkomo Family for empowering the people’s lives socially, academically, politically and culturally,” said Father Ndlovu.
Away from the tea room where the name Nyongolo first gained prominence, Joshua had become the name on everyone’s lips as Rhodesia became a theatre of war. Thus, as the war for Zimbabwe’s liberation reached its peak, the role of St Joseph’s mission did not diminish.
“In 1978, Fr Bernard Ndlovu who was born and bred at St Joseph’s Mission and joined the Priestly studies in 1948, was appointed to the Vicar General of the Diocese of Bulawayo during the peak of the war of liberation and was part of the delegation sent by the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops Conference to meet Zapu and Zanu in Lusaka, Zambia.
The purpose of the meeting was to “share views” with Zapu and Zanu leaders, especially, with the Zapu Joshua Nkomo and Zanu President Robert Mugabe on the situation of the war in the country and about the future role of the Church in Zimbabwe.
“The 1978 meeting with the Zapu leadership was also attended by President Kenneth Kaunda, the Apostolic Nuncio to Zambia, and Archbishop Milingo of Lusaka.
The late RG Mugabe
The Zapu delegation compromised Mr. Joshua Nkomo (President), Mr Munodawafa (Chairman), Mr G Silundika and Mr Gopwe (Foreign Affairs), Mr. Stephen Nkomo (Security) and Mr. Marembo (Internal Affairs), and few other officials. Having completed their meeting with Joshua Nkomo and the Zapu representatives, Fr Bernard Ndlovu and his team went on to meet Zanu leadership on 20 and 21 August 1978 in Lusaka.
The Zanu delegation comprised Robert Mugabe (President), Simon Muzenda (Chairperson), Josiah Tongogara (Military Commander), Edgar Tekere (Secretary General) and Emmerson Mnangagwa (Security) who was to become the Head of State for the Second Republic, His Excellency Cde ED Mnangagwa,” said Father Ndlovu.
While Zimbabwe had long attained its independence and its now over two decades since Dr Nkomo had passed, Father Ndlovu said he still remembered fondly how St Joseph’s was dear to his heart whenever he used to pay him a curtesy call.
“In 1997, while I was doing my studies at Chishawasha Major Seminar and University of Zimbabwe, I used to pay special visits to the Dr Nkomo in his Harare Government Offices. I was already a member of the Clergy in the Catholic Church having been ordained a Deacon by Archbishop Henry Karlen CMM in August 1997. Dr. Joshua Nkomo was very happy to see a young man in a Roman Collar from St. Joseph Mission – Nyongolo area,” he said.
Reflections on the contributions of the Nyongolo family takes particular significance this year, as the St Joseph’s Mission celebrates its 100-year anniversary this year. On 23 March, the Catholic Mission, which was established by Jesuit Missionaries in 1923, celebrates a century which has seen it undergo various transformations.
Once located at what is now Bidi Primary School, in 1930, there was an exchange of Mission fields with Jesuits Priests or Missionaries moving to Mashonaland while the Congregation of Marrianhill Missionaries (CMM) moved to Matabeleland from Triashill Mission.
One of the main reasons for this arrangement was that the CMM had a Zulu background from KwaZulu Natal in South Africa given that Ndebele language had strong similarities to the Zulu language.
As a result, Fr Peter Ebner (CMM) and others relocated the Mission to its current place among the Kwiyanii-Malaba people who constituted the majority of Catholics in the area but still under Chief Bidi.
The neighbouring chiefs are Chief Malaba to the south and Chief Bango across Semokwe River and Gubula- Mbembeswana areas while Chief Fuyane is to the furthest north eastern front of the Mission.
It is these close ties with the local community that has seen the traditional leadership throw its full support and blessing for the 100-year celebrations of the Mission’s existence, with Chief Malaba and Chief Fuyana on setting the ball rolling by making various donations upon a visit to the Mission last year.