“In Zimbabwe politics there is beating, torture, hatred, pushing and shoving, you need to have a soft heart. Otherwise when you get state power and you don’t have a soft heart you will kill people in revenge. If you don’t  want  to forgive and offer solidarity to others you have a problem, ”said Tsvangirai.

Tsvangirai was arrested ,beaten, jailed and tortured several times in the past recent years  when  he was still  an opposition leader .He added that  Gombani -Dube who passed  away on Monday in Kadoma due to bird flu was MDC-T unifier and had a  unique  character .

“I have lost one of my best player in my team and I don’t know what to do, because Gombami was key player of my team,” he said.  

Zanu-PF Senator for Chimanimani Monica Mutsvanga who worked with Gombami -Dube in the parliamentary select committee (COPAC) said  “she was a true Zimbabwean who didn’t  care that  there were from different political parties”.

Chief Fortune Charumbira who is the president of the Chiefs Council also praised the MDC-T Senator “as a hard worker especially in the drafting of the new constitution saying she is irreplaceable”. 

Gombami-Dube  was finally laid to rest at West Park Cemetery in Bulawayo and several Zanu-PF leaders including COPAC co-chairpersons Paul Mangwana and MDC-T’s Douglas Mwonzora were present. 

More than 64 members of parliament from both Zanu-PF and the two MDCs, 10 cabinet ministers and six traditional chiefs attended the Gombami-Dube burial.

Gombami-Dube 48 died after complaining of disorientation and dizziness while travelling home to Bulawayo from a funeral in Gokwe on Boxing Day.  She was rushed to a hospital in Kadoma where she died.

The senator was the deputy chairperson for the parliamentary select committee (COPAC) in charge of revising the constitution. 

She was also the MDC-T's deputy chief whip in the Senate. Family spokesperson Samuel Gombami said postmortem results released on Tuesday in Harare show that she died of bird flu.

By Special correspondent