Midlands mourn journalist ‘Big T’

GWERU — Midlands Province was plunged into mourning following the death of ZBC Midlands
bureau cameraman Tinashe “Big T” Rupende who succumbed to Kidney failure at Gweru Provincial
Hospital after a long battle with renal disease.
Rupende, who was popularly known as Big T due to his imposing figure, died at the age of 38. He
was laid to rest at his rural home in Mount Darwin on Thursday.
Minister for Midlands Provincial Affairs and Devolution Senator Larry Mavima described the late
Rupende as a dedicated and patriotic journalist who was prepared to serve his nation despite being
sick.
He said Rupende was a dedicated journalist who was proud of his profession and had nose for news
especially reporting on issues affecting the rural community.
We always came to pick him up and go long distances like Gokwe and anywhere in the province and
he was always there. I am pleased to say he served his nation with pride until his untimely death,''
said Senator Mavima.
The Midlands Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister said the death of Rupende was not a loss for
the media fraternity only, but for the whole nation.
He was very passionate about his work and he was able offer advice to upcoming journalists and
camera persons in the media industry,'' he said.
Zimbabwe Union of Journalists (ZUJ) national executive member, Michael Magoronga described
Rupende as a unique breed of journalist, one not easy to replace.
It will never be easy to replace Big T as we used to call him, he was an experienced journalist who
was easy to approach for advice,'' he said.
Magoronga said Big T did his job to the best of his ability doing a lot of media coverage and creating
a lot of content with quality broadcasting which made him a guru in the industry.
We are with his family in this time of mourning, said Magoronga.
Rupende joined the ZBC in 2008 as a junior cameraman and rose through the ranks to Bureau
Cameraman until the time of his death.
He is survived by his wife Primrose Mashegede and two daughters Anashe and Anopaishe.