Liberation war stalwart, diplomat and former Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) chief executive, Ambassador Thomas Mandigora, who died last Saturday will be buried tomorrow at Glen Forest Cemetery in northern Harare.
The late former Ambassador to Botswana succumbed to effects of a stroke and died at his home in Gletwyn aged 68.
A mass service for the late liberation war veteran will be held today at St Paul’s Church in Highfield from 2pm to 4pm and afterwards, the body will be taken to his home where it will lie in State.
There will be another church service tomorrow from9amto 1130am and thereafter,there will be body viewing before burial at 2pm.
Mandigora served in Botswana for a lengthy term of 12 years from September 2005 to 2018 and was at one time the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps.
He was involved in bilateral political dialogue and strengthening bilateral cooperation between Botswana and Zimbabwe.
Ambassador Mandigora left at a time when relations between the two countries had gone to a much higher level with the signing of the Bi-National Commission that was done at the SADC Council of Ministers and Summit in Windhoek, Namibia.
He was born on June 9, 1955 at Mpilo Hospital in Bulawayo.
Ambassador Mandigora left Highfield in the then Salisbury, for Mozambique as a 21-year-old in 1976, crossing through Chief Tangwena’s area in Nyanga district.
He underwent military training in Mozambique and was deployed to the front where he was injured prompting him to return to the rear where he worked in the Zanu publicity department with the likes of Ambassador Chris Mutsvangwa, Cde Webster Shamu and Cde Munyaradzi Machacha, among others.
He did a lot of diplomatic work for Zanu during the war, reporting to the chief representative of the party.
He also worked as head of publications for Zanu’s information and publicity department, contributing to the Zimbabwe News and other publications.
He produced and reported for the Voice of Zimbabwe radio in Maputo between 1977 and 1980.
After the war, he joined the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation where he worked in various capacities from 1980 and became director of news and current affairs in 1986 before being appointed director of programmes, news and current affairs from 1992 to 2001.
In addition, he worked with various broadcasting institutions regionally and internationally before serving as Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ) chief executive from 2001 to 2005.
Ambassador Mandigora studied with the University of Lincolnshire and Humberside in the United Kingdom and held a Masters in Business Administration degree (1996 ) and well as a post graduate diploma in Business Administration. – The Herald
