Freedom Fighter Mudenda Interred and Given State Funeral

Mr. Elijah H.K Mudenda was accorded a state funeral and was put to rest with full military honours on Thursday.

Mr. Mudenda a distinguished freedom fighter and former Prime Minister during the reign of first Zambian President Dr Kenneth Kaunda died on Sunday after a long struggle with stroke which he suffered sometime back.

A church service was held in his memory at the Cathedral of the Holy Cross and several distinguished guests attended including newly elected president Rupiah Banda, opposition leaders Michael Sata, Hakainde Hichilema and General Godfrey Miyanda. First and second republican presidents Kaunda and Fredrick Chiluba were also in attendance.

The government declared Thursday as a day national of mourning and flags flied at half mast and both the national broadcaster and private electronic media houses played solemn music throughout the day and all programmes of an entertaining nature including sporting activities were suspended.

And during church service, Dr Kaunda in his eulogy, said Mr. Mudenda was a great fighter.

“We have lost one of the compatriots, a freedom fighter who dedicated his life to the service of human beings. In 1962, the political struggle intensified, and the wind of change was sweeping on the continent of Africa and soon affected Zambia,” he said.

Dr. Kaunda said at hat time, Zambia did not have many educated indigenous people because the colonial government deliberately overlooked education to them. He said upon realising that elections would be called upon any time, they began to make arrangements by recruiting some people with higher education.

“Comrade Kaiba Mudenda was a research officer at Mount Makulu. We decided to approach him in order to request him to join the freedom struggle. That was in 1962, and some colleagues were assigned this task namely comrade Sikota Wina and Aaron Milner. We discussed with him and he agreed and readily accepted to join the struggle and the rest as they say is history.

Upon attaining Independence in 1964, Mr. Mudenda who was a member of the central committee was appointed Minister of Agriculture.

“He was a very effective minister who worked well with a professional touch. I later appointed him minister Finance and later Minister of Foreign Affairs. He was a team player ad a committed servant of the people, a selfless leader who served his country with honour and sincerity and integrity,” he said

Dr. Kaunda said in 1975, he appointed Mudenda as Prime Minister until 1977. He described him as a humanist, family man and a brother to all those who served with him.

Another politician John Mwanakatwe who served under Dr Kaunda’s first cabinet thanked government for according Mudenda an official funeral. He said he had lost a brother.

And giving Mudenda’s life history, another old politician Peter Matoka said Mudenda was born in 1927 in Macha, Southern Province. He went to school there then proceeded to Munali Training Centre.

“I was privileged to meet Mudenda on the day that he arrived at Munali. We were lynched by the old students because we were newcomers, that same evening I was painted white and given ‘chinkwangwa’, nshima remains, with beans and lots of chillies. I was only a kid of 13 years. I was in tears most of the time. It was Elijah that protected me and threatened them, Matoka said, adding that he appreciated Mudenda’s protection even to date.

Matoka said it was during their Munali days that he saw the intellect in Mudenda. He said from Munali Mudenda went to do his first degree and got double distinctions. He later went to Cambridge University to do his masters.

Mudenda was buried with full military honours and his coffin was draped in the national flag and army personnel were the pole bearers.

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