Samhuri Ngonidzashe
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His Excellency Samhuri Ngonidzashe | |
|---|---|
 Samhuri Ngonidzashe in 1952 | |
| President of Rwizikuru | |
| In office 2 July, 1946 – 2 July, 1954 | |
| Vice President | Shungudzemwoyo Nhema (1946-1950) Vudzijena Nhema (1950-1954) |
| Preceded by | Shungudzemwoyo Nhema as Premier of Riziland |
| Succeeded by | Vudzijena Nhema |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Daniel Samhuri Ngonidzashe c. 1899 Vongai, Riziland |
| Died | 2 July, 1961 (age 61-62) Port Fitzhubert, Rwizikuru |
| Nationality | Estmerish (1899-1946) Rwizikuran (1946-1961) |
| Political party | Independent politician |
| Other political affiliations | Rwizikuran National Movement (1927-1946) Mubatanidzwa weRusununguko rweRwizikuru (1946-1949) |
| Spouse | Kugarakunzwana Ngonidzashe |
| Children | 2 |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | File:Rwizicolonialflaga.png Riziland |
| Branch/service | Colonial Militia |
| Years of service | 1926-1936 |
| Rank | Warrant officer |
Samhuri Ngonidzashe (c. 1899 - 2 July, 1961) was an anti-colonial activist who organized the Rwizikuran National Movement, which helped end Estmerish rule over Rwizikuru. Following its independence in 1946, he was sworn as the first President of Rwizikuru, as per the constitution of Rwizikuru, and served two terms, having been re-elected in 1950, before handing power to Vudzijena Nhema in 1954.
Samhuri Ngonidzashe was born in Vongai, and went to school in Vongai, but was forced to drop out in 1912 due to lack of money. After moving to Port Fitzhubert in 1916, he found a job, and was able to save money so when he returned to Vongai to marry his wife, he was able to live better than his parents. In 1923, he returned to Port Fitzhubert so his children could obtain a better education than he ever could. There, he became a lay preacher, and soon discovered the underbelly of racism. In 1926, when the Great War started, he joined the colonial militia, and served until 1933, when he fell ill with malaria. After recovering, he returned to the militia in 1934, and served until 1937. That year, he established the Rwizikuran National Movement, and over the next decade, he saw its growth into a dominant political force which led Rwizikuru to independence from Estmere in 1946.
As President, he oversaw the development of infrastructure and sought to build a national identity which was inclusive of the veRwizi and the Ndjarendie peoples. While he did succeed in developing infrastructure, healthcare, and education, he met significant resistance from Alai Aboydu Tsalar, who sought increased autonomy for Yekumavirira.
Following the expiration of his second term in 1954, he peacefully handed over power to Vudzijena Nhema, and took up a seat in the National Assembly, where he served as speaker until his deteriorating health forced him to retire in 1960.
Early life
Samhuri Ngonidzashe was born sometime in 1899 in Vongai to Mutupo Ngonidzashe, and Chivaraidzo Ngonidzashe, as the seventh child, and the second son, behind Munonzwa Ngonidzashe.
In 1904, he entered the mission school in Vongai, where he was baptized as a High Estmerian, and took the name of Daniel. At the mission school, he was described as having "excellent potential" to be a High Estmerian minister, due to his "quick absorption and application" of the concepts he learned in school. He was seen as being incredibly learned by his teachers.
While Samhuri Ngonidzashe wanted to continue his studies after he finished compulsory education in 1912, his family's poverty prevented him from continuing his studies. Thus, he was forced to work at his family's farm.
His fortunes started to change when in 1916, he made his first trip to Port Fitzhubert to find work. There, he found a job as a servant with a white family, and met Shungudzemwoyo Nhema there. At his job, he admitted that:
"While the Fulkers [the family Samhuri and Shungudzemwoyo worked for] paid well, and the work itself was not stressful, the attitudes of the family towards us were counter to the values I had held so dearly: they saw us as lower than them because of our skin, while I believed that we are brothers in Sotiras."
In 1918, after receiving news that he was to marry Kugarakunzwana Mbangwa, he quit his job and returned to Vongai, where he married her. With his savings, he was able to find a "better life" in Vongai than that of his parents, with him getting a job as a lay preacher at his old mission school.
However, in 1923, realizing that Gamuchirai would be entering school the following year, he realized that if he stayed in Vongai, his children would not receive an opportunity to better themselves. Thus, he and his wife moved back to Port Fitzhubert, and their home was sold to some white settlers.
With the proceeds of the sale of their home in Vongai, they were able to buy a "well-off" home close to the Euclean core of town, and had enough left over to get Watida and Tichafara to attend the Charles Fitzhubert School, as well as find a new job as a lay preacher at a nearby church. He soon made contact again with Shungudzemwoyo Nhema, where he discovered that the Fulker's fired him in 1922 after having spoken up against the Fulker's increasing mistreatment of their Bahian servants.
He noted that the conversation with Nhema:
"...caused my blood to boil in pure and unbridled anger. As we recounted our experiences of racism in our adulthood in Port Fitzhubert, compared to the values that we were taught [in school], I realized that there is something wrong, something unnatural with Estmerish rule over this land. I couldn't quite place what, but I knew it had to be there."
Over the next few years, many at his church talked to him about the racism that they have faced by colonial officials and by Eucleans who have come to Riziland, and combined with his experiences in dealing with racism directed at him, he began to feel that Estmerish rule was inherently unjust.
Military service
By the time the Great War begun in earnest in June 1926, despite his beliefs that Estmerish rule over Riziland was unjust, he enlisted in the colonial militia, saying that "it is better for us natives to deal with the devil we know as opposed to gamble with the devil we don't know."
After training, he was deployed in October to Port Graham, where he would live for the next five years. In Port Graham, he was assigned to defend the city from Gaullican attack by both sea and land, as Port Graham was the end of the rail line to Port Fitzhubert. While Port Graham was subject to several bombardments by the Gaullicans during his time in Port Graham, from both sea and air, he never faced a serious attempt by the Gaullicans or their colonial troops in Quigomba to attack Port Graham. By 1928, he had risen to the rank of Sergeant, and by 1930, to that of warrant officer.
By 1931, he had been redeployed from Port Graham to Rusere, where he noted that the conditions there were significantly harsher than in Port Graham. In 1933, he fell seriously ill with malaria, and nearly died from it. However, "divine providence," combined with treatment in Port Fitzhubert helped him recover from the illness, and he returned to service in 1934, although he was reassigned to Port Fitzhubert as a sentry to guard an armoury.
After the end of the Great War in February 1935, he maintained his position as sentry, while the military downsized, with the threat from Gaullica having passed. In March 1936, he was given a honourable discharge, allowing him to leave the colonial militia.
Early political career
With the end of the war, he and Shungudzemwoyo Nhema decided to establish the Rwizikuran National Movement in 1937. They believed that with the end of the Great War, the war had, according to him:
"...thoroughly destroyed the notion that Euclean imperialism can be maintained by the defeat and destruction of the Entente forces. For the victors to continue to maintain their imperial rule over the colonies in Bahia are thoroughly unacceptable, and are a direct insult to all the Bahians who died in the war."
Thus, on 1 May, 1937, the two held a conference in Port Fitzhubert to establish the Rwizikuran National Movement, with sixty people attending, most of whom were those who served alongside Ngonidzashe during the Great War.
Over the next few months, he and Nhema travelled across Rwizikuru to encourage people to join. He notably paid a visit to the recently annexed city of Saint-Germain in August, where he was met with a positive reception by many of the Bahian community, especially by the local veRwizi.
By the start of 1938, the Rwizikuran National Movement had around ten thousand members. At around this time, the colonial authorities began to be concerned about Samhuri Ngonidzashe's and Shungudzemwoyo Nhema's activities, as the authorities deemed them to be a threat to the stability of the colony of Riziland.
After a speech in March 1939 in Crogan, a police officer arrested Samhuri Ngonidzashe for sedition after making a speech condemning colonial rule. The arrest garnered outcry by many Bahians, and in his trial in January 1940, when he was tried in an all-white jury. There, Samhuri Ngondizashe hired prominent lawyer Barnabas Figgins to give the defense. Figgins said that:
"The accusations of sedition against my client is patently untrue. In his speech in Crogan, he never expressed any statements urging the Bahian population to promote any ill-will between the Bahian population and the colonial government. What he was saying was that the colonial government should be more representative of the Bahian population, and prepare the Bahians for independence at some point in the future."
The prosecution responded with claims that Samhuri Ngonidzashe's speeches since the establishment of the Rwizikuran National Movement were advocating an end to colonial rule "by any means possible," and therefore, it has demonstrated a clear pattern of sedition.
After a few weeks of deliberation, an all-white jury convicted Samhuri Ngonidzashe of sedition, and the judge sentenced him to life in prison, with parole after twenty-five years.
The verdict garnered outrage by many veRwizi, and Samhuri Ngonidzashe launched an appeal against the verdict, citing flagrant biases by the all-white jury, and the fact the prosecution's case was more focused on his general pattern as opposed to the specific speech at Crogan, which he was arrested for. Thus, in October 1940, the Court of Appeal heard the case, and ordered a retrial.
In March 1941, the retrial was held, and after rehashing the defense and the arguments of the prosecution, a jury comprised of six Bahians and six Eucleans agreed to acquit Samhuri Ngonidzashe.
Rise to power
At around this time, Riziland was granted limited self-government by Estmere, in an effort to heed off independence. This included the establishment of a sixteen member legislative council, with eight legislators being elected from the Eucleans, and eight from the Bahian community.
This greatly outraged Samhuri Ngonidzashe, who wrote to Shungudzemwoyo Nhema, saying:
"In an attempt to maintain their illegitimate colonial rule over Rwizikuru, the varungu have decided to create a legislature in which we ostensibly have a say, but in practice do not, for the vote of a murungu is worth the votes of two-hundred-fourty-one Bahians."
To his surprise, Nhema felt that it was essential for the Rwizikuran National Movement to compete in the upcoming legislative elections.
This shocked Ngonidzashe, who said that "it is pointless for blacks to participate in these farce elections when the real power will remain in the hands of the whites."
Ultimately, they decided that while the RNM can run candidates, as per Nhema's wishes, Ngonidzashe would try and convince the Bahian population to not vote in the elections. Thus, over the next few months, while Nhema campaigned for the RNM candidates, Ngonidzashe sought to convince the Bahians to stay home and not vote.
Thus, in September 1941, the turnout for the elections was at 30%, as while 80% of the white community voted, only 30% of the black community voted. The Rwizikuran National Movement also did not do well, only gaining two seats, compared to the Movement for the Advancement of Bahians in Riziland, led by Mazomba Tungamirai, who gained three of the eight Bahian seats.
Thus, it seemed to Samhuri Ngonidzashe proof that "the system had been rigged to hamper the ambitions of the black community." However, with the white roll split between the Gaullophone Alliance paysanne and the Anglophone Conservative Front, Samhuri and Nhema felt that it might be possible for the Rwizikuran National Movement to influence politics.
In 1942, Nhema was able to influence the government to amend the bill to grant official language status to veRwizi, alongside Estmerish and Gaullican, after threatening to end an agreement which allowed the Rwizikuran National Movement to support the AP. With this success, combined with many others over the next few years, Samhuri Ngonidzashe began to be convinced that it may be possible for the black community to use the legislature to advance independence.
By 1945, with the legislative council dissolved for another election, Ngonidzashe and Nhema decided to campaign together for the Rwizikuran National Movement, and to encourage the Bahian population to register and vote for the Rwizikuran National Movement, on a platform of independence. Thus, in August, the Rwizikuran National Movement succeeded in taking all eight of the Bahian seats, while the Conservative Front and Alliance paysanne each had four of the white seats.
Thus, there was substantial tension as the Conservative Front and the Alliance paysanne tried to negotiate a coalition between the two parties, in order to prevent Nhema from becoming Premier. However, numerous issues forced AP leader and outgoing Premier Jean-Louis Milhaud to abandon the negotiations by 15 October, and instead negotiate an agreement with the Rwizikuran National Movement, where they came to an agreement on supporting the RNM on any confidence vote, and any agreement with Estmere.
This enabled Nhema to become Premier on 23 October, 1945, and thus allowed negotiations to begin with the Estmerish authorities. At this point, the Estmerish government was tied down in the Solarian War against Solaria. Thus, according to Samhuri Ngondizashe:
"It would be incredibly easy at this point to demand immediate independence: if they are unwilling to grant us immediate independence, then we should begin to fight for independence. Such a strategy would force Estmere to decide whether they wish to continue their unjust rule over Rwizikuru, or to continue fighting against Etruria."
To their surprise, the negotiations were quick, as Estmere was more than willing to grant independence to Riziland, although they agreed to have the independence date be on 2 December, 1946. While Samhuri Ngonidzashe was privately disappointed by the turn of events, he was also delighted that the Estmerish have realized that colonial rule was no longer tenable.
Thus, over the next several months, preparations were made for an independent Rwizikuru: a constitution was drafted, national symbols adopted, renaming the Rwizikuran National Movement to the Mubatanidzwa weRusununguko rweRwizikuru, and finally, holding elections in September, where Samhuri Ngonidzashe was to run for the newly-established post of President, with Shungudzemwoyo Nhema being nominated as his running mate for the vice-presidency. He won with 57% of the vote, compared to Mubatanidzwa weVakuru's candidate, Carter Chimutengwende, who won with 43% of the vote.
Presidency
First term
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On 2 December, 1946, he presided over the independence ceremonies at Port Fitzhubert, alongside the outgoing Governor of Riziland, (TBD). At the independence ceremonies, he was sworn in as the first President of Rwizikuru, and swore to uphold the Rwizikuran constitution. Following this, outgoing Premier Shungudzemwoyo Nhema was sworn in as Vice-President. With this, he and his family moved to the Presidential Palace, formerly Government House.
Almost immediately, Samhuri Ngonidzashe and the government began to set out on a "nation-building" policy to unite the veRwizi and the Ndjarendie peoples under one nation, with Samhuri stating that "it is inconceivable for the Rwizikuran people to be two nations in one state."
To this end, he set to reduce the role of Estmerish in schools, and in April 1947, he passed the First Amendment which amended the constitution so the veRwizi language text of the constitution would take precedence over the Estmerish version, and to restrict Estmerish language instruction to a single subject, with Estmerish to only be used as a language of instruction in areas with a sizable Estmerish varungu population.
In addition, he almost immediately set out to improve the infrastructure between the cities of Sainte-Germaine (present-day Mambiza, Garambura), Port Fitzhubert, Port Graham, and Port Vaugeois (present-day Port Tsalar, Mabifia). To this end, he envisioned a mugwagwa, or motorway, to connect all four cities, and to improve telephone connections.
By the end of his first year in office, Samhuri Ngonidzashe had garnered high approval ratings among the veRwizi people, despite some setbacks, such as riots in Sainte-Germaine in March and April 1947. However, his focus on promoting the weRwizi language as the national language started to alienate the Ndjarendie people.
Despite this, he pressed on: in 1948, he began preparations for a national radio network called the Nhepfenyuro mubatanidzwa yeRwizikuru, or NMR, with transmitters being erected across the country, and trained engineers. On 2 December, 1948, the radio network began to broadcast in the weRwizi language, and the Ndjarendie language. At around that time, he began instituting a Swetanian model of socialism on Rwizikuru, abolishing political parties in 1949, and instituting economic policies reminiscent of contemporary Swetanian policies.
As well, Samhuri Ngonidzashe invested effort into standardizing the national curriculum, so to ensure that all students across the country would learn the same things "at the same pace," in order to ensure that a student in Sainte-Germaine moving to Port Fitzhubert can easily catch up with their peers.
These policies helped improve Samhuri Ngonidzashe's popularity among the veRwizi majority. This allowed him to easily be nominated in June 1950 as the presidential nominee. However, due to Shungudzemwoyo Nhema's declining health, Nhema decided to retire from the vice-presidency after the 1950 elections. In his place, Shungudzemwoyo's son, Vudzijena Nhema was selected to be the vice-presidential nominee.
He faced a vigorous campaign against Tashongedzwa Chiroto, but on 22 September, 1950, he defeated Chiroto with 55% of the vote, compared to Chiroto's 45% of the vote, while Ngonidzashe's supporters won ninety seats in the National Assembly, and Chiroto's supporters taking the sixty seats in the legislature.
Second term
On 2 December, 1950, Samhuri Ngonidzashe was sworn in for a second term as President, while Vudzijena Nhema was sworn into the Vice-Presidency. Just days after his inauguration, speaker Lucas Maraire died, leaving his supporters to name Samhuri's nephew, Izibongo Ngonidzashe, as mutauri.
At this point, Alai Abyodu Tsalar established the Yekumavirira Liberation Movement, to advocate for increased autonomy to the district of Yekumavirira, especially over education. Over the next few months, the Yekumavirira Liberation Movement gained a lot of support from the Ndjarendie living in the country, and in July, he met with Tsalar to negotiate a compromise, in which children attending infant school would be educated in Ndjarendie, and that throughout their education, children will be also taught in Gaullican.
With this agreement made, it was tabled to the National Assembly, which came into effect in August as the Second Amendment to the Rwizikuran constitution.
On 10 September, 1951, after Izibongo Ngonidzashe kicked Cecilia Sands out of the legislature, the rest of the opposition, save for Rambwa Dabengwa, left the chamber. On the next legislative day, Izibongo tabled a motion which expelled all those who have left, and called for by-elections. With this passed, Izibongo was able to convince his uncle to call by-elections on 6 November.
The opposition refused to take part in these elections, allowing the government to take all the fifty-nine vacant seats, thereby giving the government all but a single seat in the National Assembly.
In July 1952, Samhuri Ngonidzashe formally opened the first section of the Mugwagwa, a section connecting Port Fitzhubert with Port Graham, to the public. Later that year, Samhuri Ngonidzashe started to take a more socialist tone, with his administration reaffirming universal healthcare for all, and opened a hospital in Nhiri.
In October 1952, he attended the funeral of Shungudzemwoyo Nhema, after Nhema died of lung cancer. Speaking at the funeral, Samhuri Ngonidzashe said that:
"Shungudzemwoyo was a powerful influence in my life, from the day we met at the Fulker's mansion. He taught us that we ought to fight for a just world, to change the unjust, and to create a better world in its wake. But most importantly, he was like a brother: one who cared for me, just as I cared for him. I do not know how I can move forward, but I know when I depart, he will be ready to receive me."
The following year, the constitution was amended a third time in July, so to replace the colonial seal mentioned in the additional articles of the constitution with a new emblem which further reflected Rwizikuru's ambitions to adopt a socialist model.
At around the same time as the amendments, the (TBD) was taking place, as Sotirian Mabifians were fleeing persecution under TBD's government in the aftermath of the TBD. As most of them were heading to Yekumavirira, this further increased the tensions between the Ndjarendie and the veRwizi, as disputes over land became much more commonplace. The Yekumavirira Liberation Movement began advocating that the refugees from Mabifia be resettled onto public lands, or in other districts, as many of them were squatters on land owned by Irfanic peoples.
By early 1954, as refugees continued to pour into Yekumavirira, Samhuri Ngonidzashe was faced with a conflict: as a Sotirian, he wanted to welcome them and to give them a place where they can practice their religion freely. Yet, as President, he felt obliged to prevent them from settling on Irfanic-owned lands. In May 1954, he established the United Bahian Republic with Djedet General-Secretary Tawadros Abdelmesseh, and Taborian President Thamsanqa Nzimande.
At around this time, he had to decide on a successor, as while Samhuri Ngonidzashe still intended to lead the government, he was approaching his two-term limit.
Thus, in June, a conference was called with the intention to decide the presidential nominee for the 1954 elections. With both Vice-President Vudzijena and speaker Izibongo Ngonidzashe both wanting to run for the position, Samhuri Ngonidzashe initially stayed neutral, before on 18 June, Samhuri endorsed Vudzijena as the nominee for the Presidency. The following day, Izibongo renounced his candidacy, and Samhuri's suppporters would back Vudzijena as the presidential nominee, although Samhuri Ngonidzashe would remain the symbolic leader of the government.
With Vudzijena Nhema now the presidential nominee, his supporters had to nominate someone to take Izibongo's Dockside constituency. Thus, they chose Samhuri Ngonidzashe to take his nephew's seat. As the Speaker's seat was traditionally uncontested, it was also seen as a sinecure position for the aging leader.
Speaker
On 24 September, 1954, Samhuri Ngonidzashe won the Dockside constituency with 99.5% of the vote, with the remaining 0.5% going to Lucy Dulini, an independent candidate.
Thus, on 2 December, 1954, Samhuri Ngonidzashe formally passed the powers of the Presidency to Vudzijena Nhema, while Vudzijena Nhema passed the powers of the Vice-Presidency to Pierre-Ardachir Niyonzima. Samhuri Ngonidzashe returned to his old house in Port Fitzhubert.
At the first sitting of the National Assembly, he was elected mutauri by all 135 legislators supported by his nephew.
Unlike his nephew, who had abused the position and powers of the Speaker, Samhuri Ngonidzashe took a more traditional role as the speaker of the National Assembly. Thus, he only voted in case of a tie-break, and never advanced his own agenda, although he did advance his nephew's agenda from time to time, although he never voted in these situations.
While many of the moderate members were relieved that Samhuri Ngonidzashe was an effective speaker, and did not abuse his powers as much as his nephew and predecessor did, some in the radical faction of government felt that he was not assertive enough. At around this time, his health started to decline, with him being hospitalized in 1956 and again in 1958 for respiratory distress, which was believed to be a result of his infection with malaria in late 1933 and early 1934.
In light of this, Samhuri Ngonidzashe announced at the 1958 conference that he will retire from politics.
Retirement
After the 1958 elections, Samhuri Ngonidzashe was succeeded in his constituency by Ingwe Ngonidzashe, who was elected as Speaker of the National Assembly.
While initially, he was doing well, having attended the inauguration of Vudzijena Nhema on 2 December, 1958, Samhuri Ngonidzashe's health started to decline in 1960, with Samhuri being hospitalized in February for respiratory distress.
While he was released from hospital in April, Samhuri Ngonidzashe suffered another episode of respiratory distress in July, and was later released from hospital by September. In late 1960, Samhuri Ngonidzashe had made an apparent recovery, saying in a radio interview in November that:
"So long as I do not exert myself, so long as I do not push myself too hard, I will be able to do just fine. After all, I need to learn that I am no longer a young man, but rather, an old man."
Despite Samhuri Ngonidzashe planning on making a political comeback in 1962, his health began deteriorating from early 1961 onward, forcing him to scrap the plans.
Death
On 27 June, 1961, Samhuri Ngonidzashe fell ill with algid malaria and was rushed to the Moffat Hospital in Port Fitzhubert.
His condition quickly deteriorated, as he experienced chills and circulatory shock. By 29 June, Samhuri Ngonidzashe fell into a coma. The following day, NMR informed Rwizikuru of Samhuri's declining health, with the presenter asking for the nation to pray for his recovery.
Thus, many gathered outside the Moffat Hospital to pray for his recovery, and flowers began to be left by well-wishers outside of the hospital. On 1 July, the family was informed that Samhuri's condition was grave.
Thus, his wife Kugarakunzwana Ngonidzashe, his children, three of his four nephews, Izibongo Ngonidzashe, Fred Ngonidzashe, Shungudzemwoyo Ngonidzashe, and all surviving daughters gathered at his bedside, as well as some of his grandchildren, such as Kupakwashe Ngonidzashe.
On 2 July, at 4:37 am, Samhuri Ngonidzashe's heart ceased beating, and he was declared dead at 4:45 am. Almost immediately, Izibongo Ngonidzashe informed the newspapers, and NMR. Samhuri's body was moved to the morgue, where the coroner declared his cause of death to be from malaria.
At 6:30 am, NMR announced the death of Samhuri Ngonidzashe on national radio. At that moment, all Rwizikuran flags were ordered to be at half-mast, and his body was moved from the morgue to the Presidential Palace, where he laid in state. During the next seven days, hundreds of thousands of mourners paid tribute at the palace.
On 8 July, the funeral was held at Saint David's Church, with High Estmerish rites. Following the funeral service, his body was interred at the Civic Cemetery: a marble tombstone was erected, with the epitaph reading:
SAMHURI NGONIDZASHE
1899-1961
Chiedza chako ngachivhenekere pamberi pevamwe, kuti vaone mabasa ako akanaka![1]
Legacy
Following his death, Samhuri Ngonidzashe was recognized in August 1961 as Baba veNyika (Father of the Nation) by President Vudzijena Nhema.
While throughout his life, Samhuri Ngonidzashe tried his best to prevent a cult of personality from arising around him, after his death, many streets and landmarks were named after him, such as the Samhuri Ngonidzashe International Airport, which was formerly the Port Fitzhubert International Airport. While this cult of personality subsided after the establishment of the Rwizikuran monarchy in 1964, Samhuri Ngonidzashe is still perceived to be a virtuous father.
Samhuri Ngonidzashe's legacy has generally been positive, with leader of the Rwizikuran government-in-exile Muchazvireva Ngonidzashe saying in 2010 that:
"[Samhuri Ngonidzashe] cared for the best interests of the people. Unlike his nephew, he was not so obsessed with taking power, or using the funds that fueled the state to help enrich his own family, but rather, to improve things for the average Rwizikuran, as he knew how bad things were for the average Rwizikuran during his youth. This goes a long way to explain why decades after the Republic of Rwizikuru has ceased to exist, Samhuri Ngonidzashe is still fondly remembered by the people."
Professor Ndanatsei Mtawarira of the University of Rwizikuru said in 2012 that his greatest achievement was "ensuring that everyone received free education and free healthcare: these two things had the potential to greatly improve the lives of everyday Rwizikurans, as it would have permitted people to focus on bettering the nation." She also said that his greatest legacy that lives on was "the development of the House of Ngonidzashe into a political family which evolved into the current royal house."
Personal life
Samhuri Ngonidzashe married the 18-year old Kugarakunzwana Ngonidzashe in 1918 in a marriage arranged by their parents. According to Samhuri, their marriage was "fruitful and happy," with the marriage lasting until his death in 1961. Kugarakunzwana Ngonidzashe died in 2014 at the age of 113, and never remarried: at the time of her death, she was the oldest person living in Rwizikuru.
Together, they had one son, Tichafara Ngonidzashe, who was born in 1922, and one daughter, Watida Masunda, born in 1924. After the establishment of the Rwizikuran monarchy, Tichafara became the head of the House of Mkwananzi, a cadet branch of the House of Ngonidzashe.
He was noted to be a doting uncle and great-uncle, with Kupakwashe Ngonidzashe fondly remembering his great-uncle as a "benevolent figure," and a "brother-in-arms."
Samhuri Ngonidzashe was a devout High Estmerian, with his noted propensity for plain dress, fasting on Sundays, and was a teetotaler, refusing to drink any alcohol, and his strict adherence to the High Estmerian concept of outward holiness. He was also noted to be a lay preacher, often preaching at churches, even during his tenure as President.
He spoke weRwizi as a native language, and was fluent in Estmerish, and could comfortably carry a conversation in Gaullican and Ndjarendie.
Honors
Domestic honors
- File:RwizikuruFlag.PNG - Anogamuchira iyo Kurongeka kweTembo, 1946
- File:RwizikuruFlag.PNG - Anogamuchira iyo Kurongeka yeMeriti, 1946
Foreign honors
- Template:Country data Estmere - Cross of the Federated Republics, 1946
Notes
- ↑ Translation: Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works! (Matthew 5:16)