{"id":64665,"date":"2022-08-19T17:20:37","date_gmt":"2022-08-19T15:20:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/legend-cont-mhlanga-national-hero-status-snub-sparks-parly-debate-mp-says-matebeleland-folk-livid"},"modified":"2022-08-19T19:32:10","modified_gmt":"2022-08-19T17:32:10","slug":"legend-cont-mhlanga-national-hero-status-snub-sparks-parly-debate-mp-says-matebeleland-folk-livid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/legend-cont-mhlanga-national-hero-status-snub-sparks-parly-debate-mp-says-matebeleland-folk-livid","title":{"rendered":"Legend Cont Mhlanga national hero status snub sparks Parly debate; MP says Matebeleland folk livid"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. <\/strong><\/span>By Staff Reporter<\/b><\/p>\n

GOVERNMENT\u2019s failure to bestow national hero status on late arts icon Continue-loving (Cont) Mhlanga was Thursday questioned in Parliament, with legislator Sipho Mokone claiming the snub had angered the generality of Matebeleland region.<\/p>\n

The lawmaker said some people within the two provinces were demanding that government reviews its \u2018state assisted funeral\u2019 decision and accord legendary Mhlanga national recognition.<\/p>\n

The award-winning playwright died on August 1, 2022 aged 64 after over four decades in the entertainment industry.<\/p>\n

He built, from ground up, Amakhosi Theatre in Bulawayo, the culture hub where latent talent was nurtured and<\/p>\n

produced most of the city\u2019s recognised arts gems.<\/p>\n

\u201cTwo weeks ago, we lost an icon in the arts and media industry, Cont Mhlanga. He was just not a mere Zimbabwean, he played a key role\u2026from 1982 when he founded Amakhosi Theatre,\u201d said Mokone.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe groomed a number of artists that we are seeing to this day. He was a shareholder at SykzMetro and Keyona TV, but to the surprise of many people in Matabeleland, Mhlanga was not accorded any hero status.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I can juxtapose with the likes of Simon Chimbetu, Oliver Mtukudzi, Soul Jah Love, surely the work that Mhlanga did for this country cannot be swept under the carpet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people of Matabeleland are very disappointed; they deserve answers to this. They feel that the state assisted funeral he was given was not enough. My prayer now is that government reconsiders its decision as regards the hero status of Mhlanga.\u201d<\/p>\n

President Emmerson Mnangagwa granted him a state assisted funeral, a day after his death despite calls by sections within the industry to have Mhlanga honoured in similar fashion as his comrades.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is in recognition of his great achievements as an internationally acclaimed playwright, filmmaker and creative director who came as a trail blazer in our country\u2019s creative and cultural industries,\u201d read Mnangagwa\u2019s<\/p>\n

statement.<\/p>\n

Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Tsitsi Gezi said provinces should have recommended Mhlanga\u2019s hero status, before promising a minestrial statement on the matter.<\/p>\n

Mhlanga\u2019s Amakhosi produced Amakorokoza, a then very popular soapie in the mid-2000s.<\/p>\n

His production house also dug up talent such as Prince Zulu, Sarah Mpofu, Zenzo Nyathi and late stand-up comedian Clive Chigubhu.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About Zimbabwe<\/a> Follow Africa-Press<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. By Staff Reporter GOVERNMENT\u2019s failure to bestow national hero status on late arts icon Continue-loving (Cont) Mhlanga was Thursday questioned in Parliament, with legislator Sipho Mokone claiming the snub had angered the generality of Matebeleland region. The lawmaker said some people within the two provinces were demanding that government reviews its \u2018state […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":64664,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,35,12,15],"tags":[1493,2189,19],"class_list":["post-64665","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-homepage-english","category-policy","category-twitter","tag-africa-press","tag-africa-press-zimbabwe-2","tag-zimbabwe"],"yoast_head":"\nLegend Cont Mhlanga national hero status snub sparks Parly debate; MP says Matebeleland folk livid - zimbabwe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Staff Reporter GOVERNMENT\u2019s failure to bestow national hero status on late arts icon Continue-loving (Cont) M ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/legend-cont-mhlanga-national-hero-status-snub-sparks-parly-debate-mp-says-matebeleland-folk-livid\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Legend Cont Mhlanga national hero status snub sparks Parly debate; 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