The President of Zimbabwe has ordered a state funeral for the former bishop of Harare, the Rt. Rev. Jonathan Siyachitema. In a statement released on 9 May 2022, President Emmerson Mnangagwa sent messages of condolence to the the family of Bishop Siyachitema and the family of opposition United African National Congress leader, the late Nesbert Mutengezanwa. Pindula News presents the statement below:
“Outstanding in their individual rights, the two men gave counsel to us as leaders, to communities they served, and at a personal level, to their respective families. Sadly, all that wisdom is now gone, and our Nation is all the poorer for it. On behalf of the ruling Party, Zanu PF, Government, and indeed on my behalf, I wish to express my most sincere condolences, foremost to the families of the dear departed, and then to the respective institutions they led, namely, the Anglican Church Community and the UANC Political Party, on these their saddest losses. They are our losses together.”
“In the light of their outstanding contributions to our society, I have seen it fit and proper that they be granted a State-Assisted Funeral.”
Ordained a priest in 1971 for the diocese of Bulawayo and served as Archdeacon of Matabeleland from 1974 to 1978 and Dean of Bulawayo until 1981. He was appointed suffragan bishop of the Lundi in 1981 and was elected Bishop of Harare in 1995, retiring in 2000.
