[Civsoc-mw] ROBERT GABRIEL MUGABE

[cuthbertkachale]

-------- Original message --------
From: cuthbertkachale <cuthbertkachale at gmail.com> 
Date: 05/12/2017  12:25  (GMT+02:00) 
To:  
Cc: Cuthbert Kachale <cuthbertkachale at gmail.com> 
Subject: Fwd: Your texts 5 Dec 2017 
 
Cuthbert Kachale wrote: 

Robert Gabriel Mugabe is the son of Suzgo Gabriel Matibiri, the Livingstonia trained carpenter who together with a brother trekked on foot from Mzimba to Salisbury in around 1918/19.

Suzgo found a job as a carpenter at a Catholic Kutana Mission, some 60 Km West of Harare. He and his brother settled there. 

Suzgo asked for a portion of land whee he could build a home and plough. The Catholics granted him that and facilitated title deeds for about 2 acres of land (my estimate-l have passed by there several times).  Suzgo had argued that he was a Nyasa and had no place in Southern Rhodesia which he could call home. That is why the missionaries made that generosity. 

Being educated and sociable,  he mingled well with the society around him. A bus stop,  and much later a post office, a police station,  all became named Matibiri. 

When Nyasas go into the diaspora,  some change their surnames to adapt to their new found homes,  away from home.  The name Mugabe became ideal to Suzgo. His brother maintained the Matibiri surname. 

Robert  has cousins who are Matibiri. One is mentioned in the CIO dossier on Grace Mugabe. 

In around 1919, Suzgo married a Shona woman called Bona. The wedding was ceremonized by the Catholic Church. 

Suzgo's first child was Raphael born in 1919. He didn't last.  He died at the age of 6 months only.  The second born was Michael born in 1922. Then Robert Gabriel Mugabe who was born in 1924. His younger than brother, Donato was born in 1926. Then followed Sabina and Bridget. 

Robert says that in Michael he had an elder brother and a friend to play with. 

Life was happy and normal until 1934 when Michael was poisoned by neighbours and died at the age of 12. By then Robert was only 10.

Suzgo became bitter,  saying that there was something wrong with that place. He decided to adventure to Bulawayo for  a brother and got himself another job.

He had left his home at Kutama in the hands of Bona and the 10 year old Robert. 

While in Bulawayo Suzgo married a Ndebele woman called MaTshuma. Together they had three children,  Albert, Donald and Regina. 

Robert used to visit his other family in Bulawayo and recalls that he was well received and eelk treated every time time he went to Bulawayo. 

With the help of the Jesuit
missionaries,  Robert went to Kutama College,  a secondary school within Kutama Mission. 

It was while at Kutama when ny late friend,  General Melvin Khanga joined that school. 

Melvin,  told me in 1981 that Robert was the most disciplined student of his time at Kutama.

Later on,  when Suzgo became old and frail, Robert went to take the Bulawayo family to Kutama. Went back to Bulawayo to take livestock including cattle,  goats which he brought to their Kutama hone by train. 

Robert's leadership acumen was noticed at an early age of 10. 

After shool career he put alk his siblings to school. However there were the usual family wrangles and squabbles between the two sections of the family.  They were unfortunately the laughing stalk and talk of the area. 

Suzgo had occasional verbal battles with the Catholic missionaries for bringing the mission into disrepute because he had a bigamous (two wives) family. 

Suzgo was very stubborn and argued back that he had title deeds to his portion of land and was free to use the land and have a family structure of his own choice. 

That's why Robert is as stubborn as his rather,  Suzgo, was. 

All Suzgo's children with Bona were born at Kutama in Zimbabwe.

All children with Matchuma were born in Bulawayo  Zimbabwe. 

Mzee.


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