Veteran musician Hosiah Chipanga has expressed his disappointment after the organisers of the Independence Gala in Murambinda excluded him from the list of performing artists for tomorrow’s event.
Ironically, the highly anticipated Uhuru Gala is taking place in Chipanga’s home province of Manicaland.
In a social media post, Chipanga claimed that the organisers informed him that he had been excluded from performing at the event for criticising the government. Wrote Chipanga:
I am deeply hurt, my family, friends and fans that even though I am a citizen and musician of Zimbabwe I will not be able to perform and celebrate the 44 years of independence in Murambinda, Manicaland which is also my hometown. Organisers from the Information Ministry said I criticise the government.
The gala is set for Murambinda B High School as part of the country’s 44th independence celebrations and admission is free.
Some of the musicians expected to grace the occasion are Sulumani Chimbetu, Nicholas Zacharia, Sandra Ndebele, Diana Samkange, Mark Ngwazi, Simon Mutambi, Shantel Sithole, Chillspot Family, and Jah Master.
Zimbabwe celebrates its independence from Great Britain on April 18, which came about in 1980 after 16 years of a protracted bush war that claimed the lives of thousands of people.
This year’s independence celebrations will be running under the theme Zim@44: Unity, Peace and Development Towards Vision 2030.
