State Media|Vice-President Kembo Mohadi has said the late national hero Absolom Sikhosana was a dedicated and loyal cadre with unquestionable credentials.

He made the remarks yesterday while delivering a condolence message to Sikhosana’s family in Nkulumane suburb.

“We don’t know where we will get another Sikhosana, we know what he always did for us. We were very much shaken in the leadership. It came to us when we least expected. We thought he would soldier on but he is no more. That is a fact, he is no longer amongst us, he is departed. We are not going to see another Sikhosana again,” said the Vice President.

He narrated his long-term friendship with Sikhosana dating back to the liberation struggle and after independence after they both started in the Zanu-PF Youth League structures.

Vice President Mohadi told the mourners that he nicknamed the national hero ‘Goebbels’ because of his ability to make bad situations look good during their time in the Youth League executive.

The Vice President said while he was in charge of the restructuring of Bulawayo province, he heavily depended on Sikhosana who wanted united party structures.

He said he leaves a huge gap that would be difficult to fill in the metropolitan province.

“As Cde (Angelina) Masuku has said, Bulawayo will never be same again without Sikhosana. I would describe him as a determined, dependable, loyal cadre that is what he was. He was self-motivated on party matters, even in his ill health, you would see him running. As Cde Masuku highlighted that the restructuring of Bulawayo also falls under my purview, Cde Sikhosana was at the forefront of that,” said the Vice President.

“So, he is a national hero, he earned it. It was not just conferred on him, he earned it. That is what he is that is what he was. So, it doesn’t come as a surprise to anyone that we might have done it without following the laid down procedures of trying to wait for letters to come from the provinces.”

Meanwhile, the Zanu-PF Youth League has described Sikhosana as a selfless servant leader who devoted his entire life in service to the nation.

In a statement, the Youth League secretary for information and publicity, Yeukai Simbanegavi said they learnt with great shock the news of the untimely passing on of one of the revolutionary party’s longest-serving and most consistent cadres.

“We do therefore, with heavy hearts, convey and extend our sincerest condolences to all those who worked with, and those who, like us, have had the privilege of benefitting from being in contact with him throughout his illustrious career,” she said.

“Even in our sorrow, we celebrate the life and times of Cde Sikhosana, who had risen to become a Zanu-PF Politburo member, as a lifetime of milestones in the ideological education of the youth. Affectionately known by many as ‘Cde Nkosi’ or ‘Headmaster’, Cde Sikhosana came to represent the energetic, vibrant, never-say-die spirit of the revolution which to his credit, came to characterise the Zanu-PF Youth League.”

He is survived by wife, Mrs Jelina Dube Sikhosana, five children and six grandchildren.

Mourners are gathered at his home, Number 3115 Nkulumane 5 in Bulawayo.