PRESIDENT MNANGAGWA’S HELICOPTER CRASHES AFTER LAUNCHING MUNHUMUTAPA DAY

A helicopter meant to pick up President Emmerson Mnangagwa after a special event crashed shortly after take-off at Masvingo Airport. The helicopter, which was supposed to fly the President back to Harare from Bikita, experienced technical problems and came down hard. Luckily, no one died in the crash.

President Mnangagwa had been in Masvingo for his 82nd birthday. He was born on September 15, 1942, in Zvishavane. Today’s event also marked the launch of a new national day called Munhumutapa Day. This new holiday was created to honor the President himself and will now be celebrated every year. The launch of Munhumutapa Day took place at Great Zimbabwe Monuments, an important historical site located 30 kilometers southeast of Masvingo town.

After the event, the helicopter took off from Masvingo Airport, which is about three kilometers from the town. The airport is small and usually only handles military or chartered flights. The helicopter had only the crew on board, not the President or other senior officials. Of the crew members, one was injured, but there were no serious injuries or deaths.

Some media outlets had reported that Vice-Presidents were also in the helicopter, but this was not true. Vice-President Constantino Chiwenga did not even attend the President’s birthday celebrations and the launch of Munhumutapa Day. Vice-President Kembo Mohadi did attend the event but was not on the helicopter either.

According to a source, the helicopter was supposed to pick up the President from Bikita and take him back to Harare. The source explained that there were actually two helicopters, and when one of them took off, it developed a technical failure. The source said, “Upon take-off, the presidential helicopter suddenly developed a technical failure and crashed to the ground, with big impact. There were three crew members and one was injured. There were no fatalities.”

President Mnangagwa had gone to Bikita for a visit after the celebrations. Bikita is an important place for Mnangagwa because his father, Mafidi, is buried there. Bikita is also considered the President’s original home, although there are different stories about where exactly Mnangagwa comes from. Some say Bikita is his original home before his family moved to Zvishavane.

This helicopter crash is not the first time that Mnangagwa’s presidential helicopter has had problems. In August 2021, another one of Mnangagwa’s helicopters had to make an emergency landing due to technical issues. That time, the helicopter was flying from the President’s Precabe Farm in Sherwood, Kwekwe, and had to land about 60 kilometers southwest of Harare. It ended up landing on a farm owned by a Ministry of Finance official. After that incident, there was a major overhaul of the President’s security.

Back then, a journalist who reported the story faced serious trouble. State security agents went after him, and the sources who gave him the information were also punished. This time around, the media and communication team for President Mnangagwa was asked to comment on the recent helicopter crash, but there was no response by last night.

Despite the technical failures and the helicopter crash, it seems like everyone involved is safe. It’s a relief that no one lost their life in this incident. However, it does raise questions about the safety of the equipment used to transport the President.

For now, people will continue to celebrate Munhumutapa Day, and the President’s birthday will be remembered. This new national day could become a big part of Zimbabwe’s culture. At the same time, there may be more discussions about the security and safety of Zimbabwe’s highest officials after another helicopter crash.