Death is sad enough when anticipated, but even worse when unexpected: Agreement Khorommbi

It has not been an easy two years of living since my brother, Agreement 'Dyambila' Khorombi was stabbed to death in November 2021. He was the only child his mother had and to see him leaving her alone too soon and forever, makes this whole situation more painful. Before he tragically passed away, he was still grieving for his father who had passed on a few months before his death.  

However, the relationship between me and my late brother had always been special because both our mothers grew up together as they share a father but different mothers. They come from an extended family, as my grandfather from my mother's side had two wives. So, Agree as many people used to call him, was my big brother who would give me his clothes if they were no longer fitting well on him. As you know that when you are growing older, there are certain clothes that you should give to your younger siblings. I still remember a yellow vest that he gave me, it has a drawing of a footballer kicking the ball and whenever I wear it, it is always a privilege.

 

In the picture above, it is me and my sisters. I was wearing the vest that the late Agreement gave to me and the fact that I am a football enthusiast, and I was given it by one of the best local footballers of all time, makes it even more special for me. 

As human beings, we have different lifestyles and do not have to judge each other based on how we live our everyday lives. My late brother was someone who loved to drink and enjoy every moment of his life, but he was a little bit thug minded as he could not go a month or two without being involved in a fight. He was just that type of person because even in the field of play, he could easily fight with the opposition players over a wrongly given foul or any misunderstanding that may happen during the football game. I remember when our home team Fundudzi United Brothers got fined and paid a huge amount of money after Agreement Khorommbi slapped a match official in one of our home games. That was the first time I saw a match official ending the game before halftime, as he gave Agree a red card and then blew his whistle three times to end the game prematurely. 

After that incident, many fans were not pleased with their player's behaviour as they had to leave the ground before having to watch the rest of the game. The very same day, the team meeting was held, coaches and staff members were all angry because the reputation of the club was entirely ruined. Mr. Jerry Khaphathe, Fundudzi United Brothers legend was extremely fuming, calling Agree a spoilt brat who must do what he does at home not in the field of play. But beside being short tempered in the field of play, Agreement was an incredible football player who could play in different positions but as a center forward, he always had a goal or two in his account. There was a time that he was scoring goals for fun, defenders who had to defend him always knew that they would have a long afternoon. 

Our uncles, who are brothers to our mothers were great football players during their time and for my generation, Agreement was said to be the one who has followed their footsteps. The likes of John Khorommbi, Reg. Khorommbi and Patrick Khorommbi.

Unfortunately, he is no longer here with us but behind he left memories that we will always remember him with. Those who had attended school with him, used same transport as him and who were close to him know it very well that he was too funny of a guy. In a room full of people, he would be the one who is cracking jokes, and it would be a happy place full of laughter and smiles. Another thing that I will not forget about him is that he would always remind me that I am his younger brother, telling everyone who is around that this is my younger brother. I am grateful to have had a brother like him, who we had times where we ate from the same plate, slept in a bed together, shared clothes, played football with and the rest of it. Although he knew that I come from a church family, he would still insist that I must go with him and buy a few drinks. Sit down and drink as brothers, but funny enough, it happened and for a few times. 

In the picture above, we were at a place called Tshikombani (Mottela) and Fundudzi United Brothers was playing a tournament game at around that place, but Agreement was not in the squad and if that was the case, this had to happen. He was my dearest brother; I knew him very well and it was never a problem for him to play a football game drunk. 

Imagine waking up one day and you receive a call from your mother telling you that your big brother was stabbed in the middle of the night, and when you try to ask if he was seriously injured or not then the next thing you hear is that he has passed away. I was completely shuttered and shocked at the same time as I could not believe what has transpired. His last Facebook post that was deleted a few days after his tragic death reads as follows: "Ndi songo todiwa Tshiheni athiho" which means that do not look for me around Tshiheni because I am not around. Tshiheni is our village and to analyse that post into details, it is like he was saying his final goodbye, but at that time no one could really understood what it meant until he passed away. However, I thank God that I was able to chat with him a few hours before he left but unfortunately, I could not reply to his latest text, which he was telling me that he was "too drunk" at that time, it was about to be 8pm, and that was the lastest conversation between me and the Mountain Snake, as he used to call himself. 

I had never experienced the death of someone close to me until Agreement passed away, it still hurts to realise that I will never hear his voice or to see him again. As far as I know, we have not been granted a legal justice as a family of the deceased, and to know that the animal who have killed our brother is out there walking freely does not make us feel any better. 

On the picture above is the killer of Agreement Khorommbi who ran away after murdering him until a few days when he handed himself over to the police.  Allegedly, this guy had always been Agree's enemy as the two had been seen threatening each other in many occasions. Yes, he handed himself to the police but after that, we never got to know what happened next. 

At the end of the day, God is above all, and he knows the truth as it is. Going forward, I would really love to witness God giving Agreement's mother enough strength to overcome the pain. Believe you me, it cannot be easy, in any planet to lose a husband and your only child in a space of six months. My brother lived his part, and he was buried like a Legend. 

[I love you forever 'Dyambila'] 💔

We will meet again.!

You did not deserve to die like this, but it is fine!

Continue to rest in peace my brother!