SB Moyo as he was affectionately known was a Zimbabwean politician and army general who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and International in the cabinet of Emmerson Mnangagwa at the time of his death. He is famously remembered for his appearance on Zimbabwe national television, ZBC TV, to announce the ousting of Zimbabwe strongman Robert Mugabe reign of 37 years and usher in Operation Restore Legacy under the New Dispensation of the second Republic of Zimbabwe led by Emmerson Mnangagwa. Th... moreSB Moyo as he was affectionately known was a Zimbabwean politician and army general who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs and International in the cabinet of Emmerson Mnangagwa at the time of his death. He is famously remembered for his appearance on Zimbabwe national television, ZBC TV, to announce the ousting of Zimbabwe strongman Robert Mugabe reign of 37 years and usher in Operation Restore Legacy under the New Dispensation of the second Republic of Zimbabwe led by Emmerson Mnangagwa. The announcement role he played in the army stepping in to remove Robert Mugabe as the president of Zimbabwe, coupled with his youthful appearance, earned him the nickname "General Bae" among Zimbabweans.
Born and raised in Mberengwa in 1960 as a third of eight children, he attended Masvingo Primary School and Manama Secondary School. Whilst doing his O’level, he left school for Zambia via Botswana to join the Zimbabwe liberation struggle along with his cousin Air Marshal Elson Moyo in 1977. Whilst in Zambia, he joined ZIPRA and attended a military course at Zambian Military Academy, Kohima. On ceasefire, SB Moyo did not go home straight but went to advance his education in Russia. He was integrated into the Zimbabwe National Army as a captain in 1980 and rose through the ranks to become lieutenant general on retirement in 2017 before his appointment as Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister, a position that he held until the time of his death. Regarded as a fast thinker, intelligent and candid by his peers in government, he was relentless in pursuit of his education which saw him enrolling at the Zimbabwe Military Academy where he furthered his studies after the war, he earned a Masters in International Relations and a PhD in International Relations from the University of Zimbabwe, as well as a Masters in Business Administration from the Zimbabwe Open University a feat which was not achieved by many who were part of the liberation struggle.
As Minister in the Cabinet of Emmerson Mnangagwa he will be mostly remembered for his determination to have Zimbabwe re-engage with the international community under the auspices of the New Dispensation’s Engagement and Re-Engagement drive, meant to establish mutually-beneficial relation between Zimbabwe and former allies, as well as new ones. Moyo fought to repair Zimbabwe's battered image internationally, criticizing sanctions against the country and played a pivotal role for the country to register significant diplomatic gains and victories across the globe. He was praised as an astute diplomat whose tenure in office was characterised by high organisational acumen and top-notch people skills.
At the time of his appointment into Emmerson Mnangagwa cabinet, SB Moyo was one of two members who was not a member of parliament (the other being Perrance Shiri). Because of Mayo’s public role in ending the Mugabe regime, there was speculation in the Zimbabwean press that Moyo was tapped by Mnangagwa as his successor. SB Moyo was mentioned in a major United Nations report on the plundering of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo following the war in 1990s. The report alleges that the then speaker of Parliament and former security minister, now president Emmerson Mnangagwa, was the key strategist for Zimbabwe’s business involvement in the DRC. The report claimed Moyo was director-general of Cosleg, a company involved in exploiting diamond mining, logging and banking in the DRC. Cosleg was then described as a combination of Comiex Congo and Osleg — the commercial arm of the Zimbabwe Defence Forces whose full name is Operation Sovereign Legitimacy.
Moyo was married to Loice Matanda, a judge who also served as ZACC, Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission chairperson, together, they had two sons. Moyo, who suffered from a kidney condition died in a medical facility in the capital Harare, days after testing positive for the COVID-19 virus which coincided with a surge in the number of cases in the country.
SBMoyo will be remembered for giving a statement to state broadcaster Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation on 15 November 2017, one day after the house arrest of Mugabe. He denied that a coup had taken place, stating that "the president … and his family are safe and sound and their security is guaranteed", and that the military were "only targeting criminals around [Mugabe] who are committing crimes... that are causing social and economic suffering in the country". Moyo went on to confirm that "[a... moreSBMoyo will be remembered for giving a statement to state broadcaster Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation on 15 November 2017, one day after the house arrest of Mugabe. He denied that a coup had taken place, stating that "the president … and his family are safe and sound and their security is guaranteed", and that the military were "only targeting criminals around [Mugabe] who are committing crimes... that are causing social and economic suffering in the country". Moyo went on to confirm that "[a]s soon as we have accomplished our mission, we expect that the situation will return to normalcy." Three days later, Moyo gave a vote of thanks to all Zimbabweans that marched in solidarity to remove Mugabe outside State House. The announcement role he played in the army stepping in to remove Robert Mugabe as the president of Zimbabwe, coupled with his youthful appearance, earned him the sobriquet "General Bae". His speech was repeated after every 15 minutes by ZTV and during the intervening period, Chimurenga songs were played. It was an unexpected speech that took the whole world by surprise and drew mixed feelings among Zimbabweans.
