Mafume orders fresh demolitions, evictions

Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume has directed the city council to reverse all leases and demolish illegal structures encroaching on Robert Mugabe Square, following a stern directive from Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe.

The move follows Minister Garwe's order to immediately halt all subdivisions on the prime land, which has been earmarked for government projects. In a letter addressed to the Harare town clerk, Garwe demanded the urgent handover of the disputed property to the Ministry of Local Government.

"The government has noted with concern the subdivision and encroachments on Robert Mugabe Square and is, therefore, requesting the urgent handover of the property to the ministry of Local Government," the circular states.

"You are directed to withdraw all allocations done and suspend all planning processes you have initiated on the remainder of Stand 3972 with immediate effect."

Mayor Mafume accused certain individuals of illegally parcelling out land and erecting substandard structures on the site, warning that the council would reclaim the property by force if occupants refuse to vacate.

"All leases must be reversed; it's a directive," Mafume told The Standard.

"The finance department must act and instruct occupants to vacate.

"If they refuse, we will move in with bulldozers."

He expressed frustration at unauthorised developments, highlighting a bus company allegedly leasing space in front of the municipal police station and security walls being constructed on the square.

"These are low-quality structures causing chaos," Mafume said.

"If proper buildings were going up, it might be different.

"But this is just land grabbing."

The mayor also pointed to other illegal occupations around the city, including structures erected at the Kuwadzana Fire Brigade station during the elections.

"People thought they could get away with it because they assumed I'd be removed as mayor. Now we must clean up this mess," he added.

Mafume accused corrupt officials within the council of enabling illegal land sales, tarnishing the authority's reputation and compromising urban management.

The ministry's demand for full control over the land signals an impending showdown between government authorities and illegal settlers. Although no timeline has been given for the evictions, the mayor's tough stance leaves little doubt that action will soon follow.

This latest crackdown echoes findings from the 2021 Commission of Inquiry report by Justice Tendai Uchena, which investigated the sale of state and council land in urban areas since 2005. The report uncovered the involvement of politically connected individuals - dubbed "land barons" - in widespread corruption, illegal land sales, and misappropriation of funds, leaving thousands of Zimbabweans without proper housing or services.

The inquiry concluded there had been an abuse of political office in urban land allocation and warned of undue influence exerted using the names of top ruling party leadership to sway government processes.

Among its key recommendations were that the government investigate corruption in land allocations, suspend all subdivision permits on acquired state land, audit officials involved in land management since 2005, and conduct lifestyle audits on those suspected of corruption.

Mayor Mafume's recent directives appear to be part of a broader effort to enforce those recommendations and restore order to Harare's contested urban land. The coming weeks will reveal the extent to which the city council can rein in illegal land dealings and reclaim public land for rightful use.