Gilbert Sibanda |
Terrence
Ndowora
Zimbabwe Civic
Education Trust (Zimcet) Masvingo provincial representative Gilbert Sibanda,
who died recently at his home in Rujeko C, will be buried tomorrow, April 08,
at his rural home in Macala Village under Chief Mazetese in Mwenezi district.
A human rights defender
who was involved in many advocacy issues in the province, Sibanda was diabetic
and had been on treatment for a long time.
His first born, Gallat
Sibanda told TellZim that the family was devastated by his sudden death which
they never saw coming.
“He started showing
symptoms of illness on 16 March but we did not know it would end this way. He
was always full of life and he loved his work representing the needs of people
in various spaces,” said Gallat.
He said his father had
worked with civic groups promoting human rights for over 20 years, a period in
which he gained respectability as a selfless representative.
Sibanda, who is
survived by his wife Nyaradzo Madzoro and six children, died in the early hours
of April 08 after suffering a shortness of breath.
He was also a poet who
worked with such fellow rights activists as Shilla Chisirimunhu of the
Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz).
“Go well my brother, we shall continue your great works in
civic education, community transformation and engagement! Rest our poet, rest
in peace,” Zimcet leader Collen Chibango wrote on Facebook.