The Sunday Mail
Leroy Dzenga recently in GURUVE
JAIROS Katanda’s name may or may not be on the roll of honour of Zimbabwe’s liberation war heroes.
His death at Gonakudzingwa Restriction Camp in 1965 was way before nationalists were venerated.
Katanda was the ZAPU leader in Mashonaland Central in the 1960s.
Time and again, his daughter Loice claims, he would host ZIPRA stalwarts at his homestead in Chiyangwa Village, Ward 11, Guruve.
“I still remember how vaNkomo (Dr Joshua Nkomo) would visit our home. ‘He would start shouting slogans from a distance to signal his presence; they had a code of sorts. VaNkomo would shout ‘ZAPU’; my father would respond with ‘PUZA’, and they would both say the passcode simultaneously,” Loice reminisced.
She also recalls visits from Misheck Chagadama, Micah Mandaza and Enock Gatsi, who were leading ZAPU activists in Mashonaland Central at the time.
During these high-level visits, usually made in the dead of night, Katanda rarely held discussions in his house.
“He always feared Rhodesian authorities would pounce and did not want to put his family at risk.”
At the edge of the yard is a mugogoma tree (pod mahogany tree) that defiantly stands tall despite being battered by time. It served as a boardroom of sorts where critical matters — including the war — were discussed.
“We knew not to disturb when father went with his visitors to the tree. The visitors would come to our house, which was essentially the ZAPU headquarters in Mashonaland Central. We made it a point to cook extra food, just in case we got visitors, as would often be the case,” added Loice.
Katanda was arrested several times for his activism.
“Our father served time in Marondera, which was still called Marandelas at the time. He also spent some years at Whawha and Gokwe Prison. In Gokwe, he was allowed to bring a few family members who would stay close by. He had four wives, so he picked his youngest wives and youngest children from all his wives.
“We went there and stayed for the duration of his sentence.”
He later returned home briefly before being arrested again and sent to Gonakudzingwa in April 1964.
“He was arrested around the same time vaNkomo was arrested. Rhodesian authorities were rounding ZAPU activists, because they were beginning to gain momentum,” she said.
Jairos Katanda died in detention in 1965. Even after his death, his home remained a sanctuary for nationalists and freedom fighters.
During the Second Chimurenga, the famous tree that used to host crucial discussions also found favour with freedom fighters in the area.
“When the war started in Guruve, vigils were held here. People like Cde Berry Kanengoni would come and address the community here, giving them insights into war philosophies. Paiitwa mapungwe anorura (we would hold intense vigils),” Loice noted.
Right until independence in 1980, the tree served as a place of succour for freedom fighters, collaborators and those sympathetic to the cause.
“The tree is old, but I will never cut it down. It reminds me of my father and our family’s little contribution to the liberation of Zimbabwe.”
Her wish is for the tree to be preserved in some way to capture its significance to the liberation struggle in Chipuriro (Sipolilo) in Guruve.
“We are growing old. My hope is that our father’s effort is recognised in some way. Since Independence, you are the first people to come seeking to understand his contribution. Even after his death, we used to cook for comrades, in the same way our father used to do it,” she said.
Beyond serving as a place of exchanges between like-minded cadres, the tree inspired battles in its own way.
“In 1978, there was a time when comrades camped at Berejena had planned a vigil. They sent Magaya Desouza, a local boy, to transport the letter informing their counterparts this side that there was going to be a vigil. Desouza was captured by Rhodesian Front soldiers,” she recounted.
After capturing the messenger, the Rhodesian Forces wanted to torture him to reveal his mission.
“He had already lost the letter for fear of letting the enemy know the plans. Once the comrades sensed danger seeing that a response had taken long, they went on a rescue mission.
“They fired towards the Rhodesian Forces from multiple directions to confuse them. As people exchanged fire, Desouza escaped.”
The family hopes they can get support to preserve the tree in memory of their father.
“If we can get anything to help us remember our father, Jairos Katanda, and what he did to fight Rhodesian settlers, we will be grateful.”
