A former ZPRA combatant, Moffat Ncube is appealing for financial assistance to treat his leg which got injured after he stepped on an anti-personnel landmine in 1979.
Ncube has been bedridden for a long time at his Cowdray Park home where he stays alone.
Narrating his ordeal during The Breakfast Club, a CITE daily current affairs show, Ncube said he stepped on anti-personnel which was hidden under a tree stub.
Anti-personnel mines are small explosive devices placed under or near the ground. They are victim-activated and designed to detonate when a person steps on, handles or comes near it.
“There was a road called fighting road, as we were walking intending to cross to the other side, I mistakenly stepped on the tree stub thinking that it was just a tree and yet the Rhodesian army had hidden an antipersonnel. That thing removed all my clothes and I was left naked. I got dizzy for some time and when I gained cautiousness and looked down thus when I noticed that my leg was just white, with no blood coming out,” he said.
Ncube said at that moment he was in possession of a pistol and he thought of ending his life but failed.
“Blood started gushing out, I became so weak and the other comrades I was with tried to render first aid on me by putting a bandage,” he said.
Ncube said the Rhodesian army managed to trace them by the exploded antipersonnel.
“That thing triggers something when it explodes, so the Rhodesian forces traced that and followed us, the comrades I was with had to put me over a tree while they also hid. The Rhodesian army passed without noticing us,” he said.
Ncube said his toes were cut off using a razor blade as they were painful.
“There was a woman who was a former nurse in Dongamuzi, they pleaded for her to cut off my toes as they were hurting me, she used a razor to cut them off.”
“Just after that gruesome experience, the Rhodesian army came again and the other comrades had to put me in a hole while they hid. The Rhodesian army failed to locate us again,” he said.
Ncube said they had to keep traveling, “We were heading towards Manzamnyama and I was put on a donkey, we had to rest in that place since we travelled for almost 5 days, unfortunately, while we were sleeping the donkeys were stolen, I suspected the San people, by that time the comrades had to carry me.”
“The following morning, we continued we our journey until we met some rangers from Botswana, and thus when I was taken by an ambulance to hospital, I stayed in the hospital for about six months as they had to do skin grafting.
He appealed for assistance so that he can get treatment either locally or outside the country.
“At the moment, when I try to seat, I see blood oozing out, I am in pain as you can see my leg is even thinning”.
Those willing to assist Moffat Ncube can get in touch with him on 0779 065 448.
