Alvina Chiwanika
Mirror reporter

Zvishavane – Ben Mataga, a war veteran, farmer and former Mberengwa South Member of Parliament (MP) has died.

Mataga (84) breathed his last at Zvishavane District Hospital on Monday after a short illness. He was buried at his rural home in Mberengwa today (Friday).
Minister of State for Midlands, Owen Ncube confirmed the death to The Mirror.
“Ben Mataga died on Monday in Zvishavane after a short illness and has been declared a provincial hero. He deserves the hero status because of his contribution to the country before, during and after the war,” said Ncube.

Zanu PF Politburo member, Simbarashe Mumbengegwi said he worked with Mataga in Mberengwa and Shurugwi and described him as a a dedicated member of the party.
Mataga was born at Mataga Growth Point on August 8, 1940. He trained as a teacher and taught at schools like Chaora, Zvishava and Chamakudo in Mberengwa from 1960 to 1977.

He was in the Zanu PF wings in Highfields from 1963 to 1964. He joined the liberation war in 1977 and trained at Nzou and Mapaye bases in Mozambique and operated in Chivi, Mwenezi and Mberengwa.

After independence he became Mataga District chairman in 1980, He became a Member of Parliament from 1985 to 1990. He was a councillor and council chairman for Mberengwa Rural District Council for 15 years. He was involved in the integration of Zanu and Zapu in fulfilment of the Unity Accord in Midlands province.

In 2009 he was appointed into the Zanu PF Central Committee at the Goromonzi conference and has been serving at that level. He saved as Midlands political commissar for 20 years.

His son, Believe Mataga said that the family had lost an icon and a father.
“He was a family man, a man of virtue. He unified the whole family,” he said.
In 1997 he won Cold Storage Commission (CSC) for the Southern Region number one prize for being a cattle producer of the year.

Mataga is survived by his spouse Spelile Siziba. His late wife Fadzai Sibanda died in 2013. He is survived by 12 children and 24 grandchildren.