A HORRIFIC car crash which killed prominent MDC leader Renson Gasela and two others late on Sunday has been blamed on fog.
Gasela, a former MP for Gweru Rural and founding member of the MDC, died along with the Arthur Mutambara-led party’s disciplinary committee chairman Lyson Mlambo and Midlands women’s wing official, Ntombizodwa Gumbo, when their 4x4 twin-cab vehicle smashed into a stationary front-loader in heavy fog.
Regional Integration Minister Priscilla Misihairabwi rushed to the accident scene 25km outside Zvishavane, and described the weather as “treacherous”.
“I could barely see, and looking at the wreckage, it became obvious that they had absolutely no idea that front-loader was on the road ... there was no attempt to dodge it,” Misihairabwi told New Zimbabwe.com.
Misihairabwi, who had to drive three injured survivors to the United Bulawayo Hospitals because of the unavailability of ambulances, said enquiries had revealed the front-loader belonged to a Chinese company.
“We understand from the police that the front-loader had been brought there to try and tow a broken down lorry carrying chrome ore from a nearby mine owned by the Chinese company ... it was a truly unfortunate sequence of events,” she said.
The party announced Tuesday that Gumbo and Mlambo would be buried on Wednesday in Mberengwa and Gweru respectively while Gasela’s burial is scheduled for Sunday on his farm some 15km outside Gweru.
Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai was visiting the Mlambo and Gasela families on Tuesday.
Zimbabwe's ambassador to Senegal Trudy Stevenson said Gasela was "one of the most decent, principled fighters for democracy and for the betterment of our beloved Zimbabwe and its people that I have ever known. "
In an e-mail, she added: "He was always ready to stand by me and come to my assistance, whatever the problem and whatever the time or place, and I know that the same is true for many, many others. This is indeed a cruel blow to Zimbabwe. We know that God's ways are not our ways, and that they are beyond our understanding, but this is one of those moments when my faith is truly tested. Dear God, why did it have to be Renson, now?"
Nelson Chamisa, a spokesman for Tsvangirai’s MDC party, said Gasela was a “committed and patriotic Zimbabwean who fought for many years to bring real change to the people of this country.”
He added: “He was a democrat, a patriot and a staunch defender of human rights who wanted to see positive change in the country of his birth.
“Since 1999, Gasela has always been on the vanguard; responding to the clarion call to save his country from the vagaries of Zanu PF misgovernance and corruption. We cherish his legacy of fighting for a better Zimbabwe.
“We value the many years we spent with him in our unarmed struggle against tyranny and repression. He has always been on the side of change; working hard to ensure that Zimbabwe gets its place in the sun.”
Chamisa said the accident was a harsh reminder to the government of the poor state of the country’s road network.
He said: “Week in week out, month in month out, blood continues to spill on Zimbabwe’s highways of death. Zimbabwe’s roads have become rivers of blood and cars death cages.
“Innocent people have perished on our roads and on our railways; far too many to warrant urgent action from the inclusive government. The MDC calls on the inclusive government to take these accidents as wake-up calls to deal decisively with the carnage on our highways which has become a loud indictment on the state of the national road network.”