Published by the government of Zimbabwe
1 July 2009
Harare — A GALLANT fighter of the Second Chimurenga, Cde Shamu died in Harare on June 2, 1996 of injuries sustained during the war.
He was the 33rd hero to be buried at the National Shrine.
The death of Cde Shamu, popularly known by his Chimurenga name, Solo Maimbodei, brought to the fore the plight -- if not the trauma -- still haunting the combatants long after the end of the war.
Like most of his colleagues, Solo bore that pain -- a reminder of the brutality of colonialism and racism -- in a manner that only true patriots can manage.
To him, it was the attainment of Independence more than his personal gain that mattered.
Born in Harare on April 27, 1950, Solo Maimbodei went to Chirodzo Primary School in Mbare.
He got employment in the postal service on completion of his primary education.
He, however, studied privately for O-Level.
Cde Solo was caught up in the nationalist fever of the 1960s. And when the Smith regime banned all political parties after imprisoning their leadership, Solo became involved in the clandestine recruitment of cadres for the armed struggle.
Under Rhodesian laws, heavy jail terms and even the death sentence were the penalties for such activities.
Undeterred, Solo travelled extensively inside Rhodesia recruiting youths.
In 1974, together with Air Commodore V.R. Zimondi and others, Cde Solo crossed into Mozambique to join the Zanla forces.
Unfortunately, they arrived in Mozambique at a time when the war of liberation was mired in turmoil and uncertainty brought about by the Nhari-Badza rebellion and the detente exercise.
As such, recruits could not get the attention of the leadership; and if they got it, it was from the dissident element.
Cde Solo's goal was to fight and indeed he walked from Mozambique to Zambia to tell the leadership that their only mission was to receive military training.
He was deployed in the vast Gaza Province as part of the first group charged with the opening-up of that war zone.
As a Detachment Commander, Cde Solo was fearless, aggressive and took personal risks to achieve military objectives.
He was bold to the extent of being careless with his own personal safety.
This side of him was shown in 1977 when he was shot in the waist while trying to rescue a colleague.
Cde Solo was to be wheelchair-bound for the rest of his life. At Independence, he joined the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation as a commissioner before being promoted to VTR editor.
Solo was an epitome of self-reliance as he worked full days like able-bodied persons. His loyalty and dedication to Zanu-PF's ideals remained steadfast.
As a Central Committee member and a member of Harare Province, Solo was known for his ability to mediate in internal disputes.
He was instrumental in the formation of the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans' Association and devoted much of his time to programmes aimed at rehabilitating ex-combatants.
At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife and two children.
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