Gweru family in search of answers over family member’s death

By Onny Gangata

A Gweru family is still searching for justice almost a month and a half after the death of their loved one, in what the police say was a drowning incident.

Fungai Junior Dhliwayo (35), met his demise while fishing at the Fletcher dam in Senga, Gweru on the night of December 7 last year.

Dhliwayo was a fisherman, popularly known as a fish monger, and had been one since 2008.

He reportedly died on the night of December 7 as he was going about his fishing activities in the company of his two colleagues.

What pains the Dhliwayo family is that the postmortem report suggests that something may have happened to Fungai prior to his suspected drowning.

According to the postmortem report done on December 13 in Bulawayo, Fungai died as a result of mechanical asphyxia.

Mechanic asyphxiation is when an object or a physical force stops one from breathing.

The report also lists two other causes for his death.

“As a result of the foregoing examination I am of the opinion that cause of the death was; 1.Mechanic asyphxia 2. Interposition of water in airways 3.Drowning,” reads the postmortem report.

Saidai Dhliwayo, elder brother to Fungai told The Echo that the family needs closure on the death of his brother.

According to Saidai, police officers at Senga police station have been dragging their feet on initiating investigations.

“My brother will never rest in peace as long as those behind his death are still out there roaming the streets,”he told this publication.

“Since the results of the postmortem, police at Senga police station have been dithering on pushing ahead with investigations.The police told us that the postmortem results have to be presented before the magistrate for the police to get a go ahead to treat my brother’s death as a murder case.”

But what gives the Dhliwayo family conviction to suspect that something may have happened to Fungai?

According to Saidai, there are a lot of inconsistencies in the accounts of those that were with Fungai on the day he passed on.

He adds that even the state of the body when it was retrieved from the dam by the ZRP Sub-Aqua unit gives his family reason to suspect there might have been foul play.

“When his body was retrieved, we found him wearing a jersey and a track bottom but normally when he went into the water, he would usually wear skin tights,” Saidai added.

“Imagine they(his colleagues)knew Fungai had drowned but only notified the police mid morning on the following day, after they had finished selling their fish caught on the night Fungai died.They only did so after some began to question and ask about my brother’s whereabouts.”

Saidai adds that one of Fungai’s fellow fisherman called Madhumbu who was with the deceased told the Dhliwayo family that after the drowning incident, he,together with an unnamed colleague searched for Fungai’s body to no avail until 3 am.

After that, it is said Madhumbu took the deceased’s belongings(bags and equipment)and dropped them off at Fungai’s residence in Mkoba 4 and then went back to Fletcher dam in the morning to search for the body without notifying the police.

“It surprises me that these two guys went on a search party alone without notifying either the family or the police about my brother’s disappearance,” Saidai further said.

“But on the same day it is said that Madhumbu and his colleague were seen at Zaire bar drinking, they only reported the matter to the police after one of Fungai’s acquittances reprimanded them for not reporting the case to the police.”

The late Fungai’s wife Edna Musangano is equally baffled by circumstances surrounding her husband’s death.

“The death of my husband is still very hard for me to take,”she said.

“I don’t understand how my husband was found wearing clothes that did not belong to him, why he was not in his usual gear he wore when finishing?

“I hope the police can get to the bottom of the matter so that we can find closure.”

Numerous follow ups to the police by the family on the progress of the case have been met with the same response, that the postmortem report is yet to be tabled before the magistrate.

For now, the Dhliwayo family can only pray and hope that the postmortem report will find its way to the magistrate to allow the police to do their work and bring closure to Fungai’s death.