The body of the late Patrick Mbewe, who was a cabinet minister in the Bakili Muluzi Government, is expected to be buried at TAWA Farm in Chiradzulu today, with full military honours.

Mbewe, a devoted Catholic Church member died on Saturday at Adventist Hospital in the commercial capital Blantyre after a long illness.

On Tuesday, there was a sendoff mass at CI Parish in the Archdiocese of Blantyre and the mass was led by Vicar General Father Boniface Tamani.

In his eulogy, Tamani described Mbewe as a humble man who contributed positively to the development of the country as well as the Catholic Church.

Mbewe was born on 17th November 1948 in Nguludi, Chiradzulu District. A Civil Engineer by Profession started his career with the Electricity Supply Commission of Malawi, Escom, and also briefly worked for City of Blantyre before venturing into business.

He started with selling timber and later set up Trust Auctioneers in 1980. This gave him the platform to set up other companies such as Trust Industries which produced Lolofoam Mattresses, and later established Tawa Melamine, the first Malawian Company to produce Melamine plates and kitchenware.

He spread his business tentacles in other sectors such as hospitality and agriculture through the establishment of of the Chilembwe Lodge located at the heart of Blantyre city and Tawa Estate in Chiradzulu .

Mbewe was one of the people who founded the United Democratic Front (UDF) in early 1990s.

He is survived by Seven Children and 12 Grand Children.