The story of Cde Nelson Ngwenya, aka Cde Makulendegeni
I WAS born and bred in Nlibwane Village, Tjehanga area, Plumtree.
I did my primary education at Tjehanga Primary School in 1976.
That was the year guerillas were recruiting many youngsters from our area to join the liberation war.
We used to envy the ZIPRA cadres who were operating in our area.
We yearned to be among the recruits, but because of age, we were unsuitable.
I was only 12 years then.
One day, my two colleagues and I begged to join our seniors who were leaving for the liberation war.
We would leave the next day at 6am sharp.
I remember we went through Botswana where Tswana Chief Habangana sourced transport to Francistown.
Our seniors repeatedly tried to persuade us to go back home, but it was all in vain.
In Francistown, we were taken to a refugee camp and, later on, transferred to Selibe Pikwe where we stayed for a week.
We were then picked up by Germany Democratic Republic (GDP) planes which flew us to Zambia’s Namphundu, a receiving camp.
We spent a week and got screened.
By then, we had joined many other cadres.
The young, like us, were sent to school.
We were sent to Jason Ziyaphapha Moyo 1 Camp where the camp commandant was Cde Makanyange.
The late Cde Solomon Skuza was our instructor.
We changed camps from time to time because of rampant bombings in camps like Mkushi, Freedom Camp and Victory Camp, among others.
Solwezi, which was also known as Jason Ziyaphapha Moyo, was one of the camps we also stayed in.
Although we later received military training, we were not allowed to go to the front because of age.
It is the late Father Zimbabwe, Cde Joshua Nkomo, who introduced us to others at ceasefire after the Lancaster House Agreement.
We came back in May 1980 from Zambia to Bulawayo Reformatory.
By then, I was 16 years old and sent to George Silundika School which was on a farm in Nyamandlovu.
The school was serving the same purpose as institutions such as Chindunduma and Chaminuka which offered education with production under the Zimbabwe Foundation for Education with Production (ZIMFEP).
In 1986, I got attested into the Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) under 6th Brigade and later into the Military School of Police where I introduced projects such as drip irrigation, goat and chicken rearing.
I retired from service in 2015.
We must always remember that the war was fought in order for us to reclaim our land.
Let us utilise it to the fullest.
Compiled by Fidelis Manyange