Staff Reporter

President Emmerson Mnangagwa yesterday sent his condolences messages to the Munatsi family following the death of the Zimbabwe Investment Development Authority (ZIDA) Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Douglas Munatsi, in a mysterious inferno.

Munatsi’s apartment at the upmarket Northfields Flats in Harare was engulfed by fire during the early hours of yesterday and his remains were discovered after the City of Harare Fire Brigade Department had put out the fire around 0500 hours yesterday.

President Mnangagwa has since described the death of Munatsi as a shocker and said the country had lost a great patriot who tirelessly worked for his country.

“The death early this morning (yesterday) of our inaugural Chief Executive Officer of the Zimbabwe Investment Development Authority (ZIDA) in unclear circumstances came to me as a great shock. A leading banker, visionary business leader, and outstanding farmer, Mr Douglas Munatsi had become our point man in operationalizing our nation’s One Stop Investment Project for improving the investment climate and ease of doing business for our country,” said the President.

President Mnangagwa added that the country lost a creative business leader and the nation was poorer without him.

“We have lost a creative business leader and a great patriot, making our nation all the poorer for it. On behalf of Government and my own behalf, I wish to console the Munatsi family, especially Amai Munatsi and the children who now have to face the world without a husband and loving father respectively. As we await completion of Police investigations into this fatal fire incident, may they continue to find comfort and solace in the visible footprints the late departed made in serving the country,” added the President.

Meanwhile, the Police are carrying out investigations to ascertain the exact cause of the fire that engulfed Munatsi’s apartment. Investigations are underway under ZRP Harare Central case IR 112047.

The deceased was a successful farmer in Mashonaland Central province, an associate of the Bankers Association of Zimbabwe and an investment guru. The details of his burial will be announced after the completion of the post-mortem.