Zanu-PF takes black farmer

Over 300 families have been resettled in Mashonaland West on land taken from new farmers leasing their farms to white former commercial farmers, it has been learnt.

It has also emerged that the province has 36 white illegal former commercial farmers who have been given up to May 15 to vacate their land by the provincial Lands Committee.

Demand for land countrywide is still high with the Government waiting list now reaching 500 000 people for both A1 and A2 models. Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial chairman and deputy chair of the provincial Lands Committee, Cde Temba Mliswa, on Sunday said no one had authority to parcel out land to another individual.

He said all farmers leasing their farms would have them repossessed as it was a sign of incapacity. "More than 300 people, mainly youths in areas such as Makonde and Mhangura, have been given land taken from those that have been leasing," Cde Mliswa said.

"This follows a recent resolution by the (provincial) lands committee that the land must be taken and given to those with capacity. Those with double allocations will also have their land taken." Cde Mliswa, who is also Hurungwe West legislator, said by leasing out the farms, the farmers had violated their offer letters.

"They did that without the responsible authority and we are saying anything to do with that should be handled by the relevant ministries of Lands and Agriculture," he said.

"As much as we understand that sanctions have made it difficult for some farmers to access inputs, we are treating leasing as lack of capacity.

"There is also a human element to the exercise and the committee has a team on the ground reviewing and consulting on the process. But what we need are productive people on the farms."

He said the province had 80 white commercial farmers with 44 of them having been recommended to stay on their farms.
"This means that the other 36 are illegal and what they should do is follow the rules of the game," Cde Mliswa said.

"Of the 44, eleven have been given offer letters and another four have been issued with 99-year leases which some blacks are yet to get.
"The party (Zanu-PF) is not discriminatory but these 36 are not sacred and have until May 15, as agreed, to leave those farms they are illegally occupying." Lands and Rural Resettlement Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora said while he was still to get a full report from Mashonaland West province, farmers leasing out land would have the land automatically taken.

"What is only allowed is contract farming and partnerships, not fronting for white commercial farmers," he said.
"Government will take the land from those doing that and give it to others in need." He said Government would provide security of tenure to all land beneficiaries. "We have been giving model A2 farmers 99-year leases and we are working on making them bankable," Minister Mombeshora said.

He said they were also working on land settlement permits for A1 farmers as part of a proposed National Land Policy with the Zimbabwe Land Commission also on the cards as required by the new Constitution. This would be part of dispute resolution mechanisms.

Major land disputes are double allocations, boundaries, infrastructure ownership and/or sharing, inheritances, divorces and illegal settlements.