Blantyre, February 24: Thousands of people led by Bishop Brighton Malasa gathered at Misesa Cemetery in Blantyre on Friday to pay their last respect to the late Reverend Father Constantine Kaswaya of the Anglican Church.
The late Reverend Kaswaya succumbed to Asthma on Tuesday afternoon at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH).
He was laid to rest next to his late wife Bertha, who died last year in December. The funeral ceremony, started with a mass at 10:30am.
In his eulogy, Bishop Malasa hailed the late Kaswaya for his stewardship when serving the church in various parishes where he had worked.
“He was a dedicated priest who was always inspiring upcoming priests to serve God no matter what problems they were going through,” he said.
Malasa also hailed the Anglican faithful for contributing a lot towards the funeral ceremony.
He concluded by describing the death as a blow to the church but urged the bereaved family not to lose hope because there was another life after death.
Bishop of Anglican Diocese of Southern Malawi, Alinafe Kalemba, reminded the gathering that Reverend Kaswaya had served in many positions in the church including Prison Chaplain and Vicar General and Dean of the Cathedral.
At exactly 3:00pm, the body of the late Kaswaya, who was until his death a priest at Soche Hill Parish in Blantyre, was interred into his resting place.
Born on 4 January, 1950 at Chiponde Village, T/A Gumpha in Likoma, Rev. Fr Kaswaya was consecrated as a priest in 1978 after his education at Kachebere Major Seminary in 1978.
He retired as a priest on 31 January, 2015, but was later on recalled before serving the church only for 15 days until he breathed his last.
The late Kaswaya, who died at the age of 65 became very popular when he was Chairperson for Public Affairs Committee in 2004 after spearheaded criticism against former President Bakili Muluzi’s third term proposal.
Kaswaya signed the famous statement: “Choosing Our Destiny” which PAC authored in 2002 in protest to former president Dr Bakili Muluzi’s campaign for his third term bid.
