Local Govt Parly Committee moves to revoke A2 offer letters

THE Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Local Government has urged the Ministry of Lands to revoke the A2 offer letters issued to farmers at Braemer Farmer in Nyatsime to enable homeseekers who legitimately bought residential stands in the area to develop their houses without further interference.

BY VENERANDA LANGA

The Irene Zindi-led committee made the recommendation last week after it emerged that 15 457 homeseekers, who had bought stands at the farm, had been interdicted by A2 farmers, who were claiming ownership of the same land.

“The committee was informed that 15 457 stands were created and were paid for in full during the Zimbabwean dollar period, but the committee was disappointed to learn that beneficiaries of this project could not be allocated their fully-paid stands on Braemer Farm because of an interdict obtained by A2 farmers barring council ownership of the land,” part of the committee’s report read.

As a result of the confusion at Nyatsime, two pressure groups emerged, one led by someone called Chief Svosve, operating across Nyatsime River, and another led by a Mr and Mrs Matambo, which operated on land within the municipal boundary, and they started illegally sub-
dividing and allocating State land.

“The committee was informed that in spite of court orders, illegal occupations continued on Braemer Farm, with about 12 000 residential stands illegally allocated by Councillor Choga from Manyame Rural District Council. Longlands Farm also experienced illegal occupations, with about 3 000 residential stands also illegally allocated by Nyatsime Housing Trust,” the committee’s report further read.

The committee also noted that Chitungwiza Town Council had between 4 000 and 5 000 illegally allocated stands.

Some of the stands were said to have been allocated on wetlands, school sites, road servitudes, buffers, under electricity lines and on top of sewer pipes

“Town clerk of Chitungwiza Municipality, George Makunde, told the committee that council sold more residential stands than were available from Braemar and Longlands farms under the Nyatsime Housing Scheme, and after realising that, council amended the layout to accommodate more stands,” the committee report read.

Several land barons, among them former councillor Fredrick Mabamba, were accused of illegally parcelling out council land and causing confusion in the dormitory town.

“These land barons created a parallel land authority which had their own architects, town planners, building inspectors and housing officers,” the report noted.

“They designed their own layouts, surveyed the stands, drew and approved their own building plans and undertook inspections so as to convince homeseekers that everything was above board.”