Zimbabwe’s first black Clerk of Parliament and founding Vice Chancellor of Africa University Professor John Wesley Z Kurewa has died.
He was 87.
Prof Kurewa who died in Harare on Friday after battling prostate cancer will be buried tomorrow in Mutare.
Speaking on ZBC News yesterday, former Minister Didymus Mutasa who served as Speaker of Parliament from 1980 to 1990 said: “He was really nice to work with. I worked with him quite a lot. First of all just as a friend and secondly as first secretary to our Parliament.
“He was the first black African to be able to tell whites in Parliament what to do or what ought to be done.
“He worked quite hard to try and find resources to start up Africa University.”
He joined the Africa University project during its planning stages and remained at the helm until December 1997.
As Africa University’s founding Vice Chancellor he played an important role in efforts to get the institution chartered and launched in Zimbabwe in 1992.
Professor Kurewa also served as the World Council of Churches’ Secretary for Evangelism from 1978 to 1980.
He joined the management team of Africa University from the post of Secretary to the Parliament of Zimbabwe.
Professor Kurewa did his undergraduate and postgraduate studies in the United States. He held a B.A. in History, Philosophy and Sociology from Asbury College in Kentucky and a B.D. from Garrett Theological Seminary in Illinois.
He earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from Northwestern University in Illinois.
Prof Kurewa returned to Africa University in January 2000 as an Associate Professor in the E. Stanley Jones Chair of Evangelism. – Herald
