Provincial land officers fired
GOVERNMENT has fired the country’s eight provincial land officers and replaced them with acting land officers from the Department of Agricultural Technical and Extension Services (Agritex), The Financial Gazette has learnt.
Sources told The Financial Gazette that the substantive officers were relieved of their duties after President Emmerson Mnangagwa took over power in November, resulting in a Cabinet reshuffle and reconfiguration of ministerial portfolios.
There have been allegations of corruption by the provincial land officers, but it was not clear if this was the reason for the dismissals.
Mnangagwa’s government has vowed to eradicate graft in government, which is thought to be widespread.
In 2015, the Public Service Commission redeployed six provincial land officers in response to allegations of corruption in land allocations raised by land seekers.
At the time, the lands ministry confirmed that there had been several complaints against land officers who illegally allocated land in return for money.
“Individual cases of corruption must be investigated and punished in accordance with the dictates of our laws. It has already begun. My government will have a zero tolerance towards corruption. Economic developments require a clean government,” Mnangagwa said in his maiden speech as President in November last year.
Several cases of graft involving high ranking government officials such as former finance minister Ignatius Chombo and former mines ministry secretary, Francis Gudyanga and former mines minister Walter Chidhakwa have been brought to the courts. — Staff Reporter