Zimbabwe’s foreign minister and coup announcer Sibusiso Moyo succumbs to Covid-19
HARARE – Foreign Minister Sibusiso Busi Moyo has died after succumbing to the deadly coronavirus.
The former army general, who rose to prominence during the November 2017 coup while an announcer, was battling kidney disease that required regular dialysis.
Moyo died days after testing positive for Covid-19 at a private hospital in Harare. He was 61 years old.
President Mnangagwa announced the death and paid tribute to the former general.
“It is with a heavy heart that I announce that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. SB Moyo has passed away,” President Mnangagwa said in a tweet.
“Zimbabwe has lost a dedicated civil servant and a true hero and I have lost a friend. He fought his whole life for Zimbabwe to be free. May he rest in peace,” Mnangagwa continues.
Moyo, who was married to the chairperson of Zimbabwe’s Anti-Corruption Commission, Loice Matanda-Moyo, is the third minister to die of a respiratory illness since July last year.
The first minister to succumb to the virus was Lands and Agriculture Minister Perrance Shiri, a former commander in Zimbabwe’s air force who also became a minister after the coup.
Shiri died in July last year and Ellen Gwaradzimba, Provincial Affairs Minister for Manicaland, became second after her death last week ahead of Moyo’s last.
Gwaradzimba will be buried at National Heroes Acre in Harare on Thursday, with the government announcing that President Emmerson Mnangagwa will interrupt his month-long annual leave to attend Gwaradzimba’s funeral.
The funeral will coincide with that of Moton Malianga, a faithful of the Liberation who also succumbed to Covid-19.
Zimbabwe has seen an increase in Covid-19 infections and deaths since the start of the year.
The Department of Health reported 52 deaths and 783 new infections on Tuesday alone, with some sources saying the figures could be higher than government reports.
The country has so far reported 28,675 cases of Covid-19 resulting in 825 deaths.
