Africa-Press – Namibia. FORMER Walvis Bay mayor Mandume Muatunga, backed by community elders, on Monday received the go-ahead from the town’s current mayor to have the remains of the late struggle stalwart Nathaniel Maxuilili moved to Heroes Acre in Windhoek.
Maxuilili died in 1999, five years before the construction of the Heroes Acre in 2005.
The move follows an article published by The Namibian about the defacement of Maxuilili’s grave at the Kuisebmond Cemetery, after vandals forcefully gained entry to his grave, stole his picture and engraved words on the tombstone.
“He is one of our heroes and he belongs where the rest of the heroes are. This gravesite will continue to be vandalised. The vandals will continue with their actions no matter what we do or repair. He belongs at Heroes Acre,” said the town’s mayor Trevino Forbes.
Maxuilili’s daughter Helena asked that the vandals leave her father to continue resting in peace.
Menethe Nendongo, the late Maxuilili’s secretary, backed Muatunga’s proposal to have him reburied at Heroes Acre.
“To see my father-in-law’s grave vandalised like that is really heartbreaking. I only have a friendly request to the government to remove his remains and rebury him where the other heroes are,” she said.
Community leader Daniel Imbili believes the request will go further if vice president Nangolo Mbumba, who was part of the negotiating committee for the reintegration of Walvis Bay into Namibia, is involved.
“He must think deeply so that Swapo can approach the government for Maxulili’s remains to go to Heroes Acre,” he said.
Muatunga said the community will draft a letter to the honours committee and to the Office of the President to look into their request.
“It pains a lot of people to look at what happened. It now looks as if we don’t take care of the area because perpetrators will still continue vandalising the gravesite,” said Muatunga.
If the government agrees to have Maxuilili’s remains moved to Heroes Acre, the proposal from the community is that the reburial takes place on his birthday in October this year.
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