Opinion / Columnist
Mnangagwa's title deeds scheme is unconstitutional and farmers risk losing their land
3 hrs ago | Views
This article serves as a warning to farmers to be cautious today before they regret it tomorrow.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa's recent handover of title deeds to 1,000 farmers at Craigengower Farm in Mazowe was celebrated by his regime as a landmark moment in securing the future of Zimbabwe's agricultural sector.
To directly receive articles from Tendai Ruben Mbofana, please join his WhatsApp Channel on: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaqprWCIyPtRnKpkHe08
In his speech, the President painted a glowing picture of how these title deeds would supposedly unlock opportunities for farmers, allowing them to access loans, invest in mechanisation, and contribute billions to the national economy.
To the unsuspecting eye, this initiative appears noble, even visionary.
Yet, beneath the pomp and rhetoric lies a troubling reality: this entire scheme rests on shaky legal ground, raises questions about political intentions, and carries the real risk that farmers could lose their land while believing they are being empowered.
The starting point must be the Constitution itself, the supreme law of the land.
Sections 72(4) and 72(5) are crystal clear: all agricultural land in Zimbabwe belongs to the state, and no private ownership is permitted.
When the land reform programme was launched in the early 2000s, all previous title deeds to agricultural land were cancelled.
Since then, the law has only allowed the state to issue permits, offer letters, or leases - not title deeds.
For Mnangagwa's government to issue title deeds without amending the Constitution is not only unlawful but a cynical deception of farmers desperate for security of tenure.
As legal experts such as Advocate Fadzayi Mahere have argued, these so-called title deeds are nothing more than worthless pieces of paper with no legal force.
No serious financial institution will recognize them as collateral.
So why would the government persist in pushing a programme it knows to be unconstitutional and invalid?
The answer is politics and money.
On the political front, Mnangagwa is desperate to win the allegiance of beneficiaries of the land reform programme, in the midst of waning support by a disillusioned citizenry.
By handing over "title deeds," he cultivates the illusion of security and empowerment, making farmers believe they finally own their plots.
This is classic psychological manipulation, timed to shore up loyalty in a period where his regime faces widespread discontent and declining credibility.
But there is a darker dimension.
These title deeds are not being given freely; farmers are required to pay substantial sums for them.
While official figures remain vague, reports indicate that the amounts are far from negligible.
This effectively makes the scheme a fundraising exercise by a cash-strapped state.
Instead of empowering farmers, it is duping them into paying for documents that cannot withstand constitutional scrutiny.
This is the first layer of exploitation.
The second, and more insidious, layer is the risk of land dispossession.
Mnangagwa has marketed the deeds as "bankable instruments" that farmers can use to access credit.
In a stable economy with affordable financing and predictable returns from agriculture, such an arrangement might indeed spur growth.
But Zimbabwe is no such economy.
The financial environment is highly volatile, inflation erodes incomes, inconsistent policies, and farming is already a high-risk venture plagued by erratic rains, lack of inputs, and unstable markets.
The likelihood that many farmers will fail to repay loans is very high.
Once default occurs, and the so-called title deeds are used as collateral, what becomes of the land?
In practice, it will be repossessed by the lending institutions, stripping farmers of the very land they thought was finally theirs.
Far from empowering them, the scheme could pave the way for widespread land loss, this time not to white settlers but to politically connected elites hiding behind banks and corporations.
One wonders if it is just a coincidence that Kudakwashe Tagwirei, Mnangagwa's close ally and one of the wealthiest men in Zimbabwe, has been placed at the helm of the Land Tenure Implementation Committee, the body overseeing this entire programme.
Tagwirei, who has acquired significant stakes in banks such as CBZ and ZB, stands to benefit directly.
These banks are among those most likely to extend loans to farmers using these so-called title deeds.
Should farmers default, the land could easily end up in the portfolios of institutions effectively controlled by Tagwirei and his associates.
In essence, the government has set up a trap where land is funneled from poor farmers to the politically connected elite under the guise of "bankable security."
This is nothing short of a new land grab, cleverly disguised as empowerment.
Moreover, the timing and presentation of the programme cannot be ignored.
Mnangagwa has couched it in the grandiose rhetoric of Vision 2030, food sovereignty, and climate-smart agriculture.
He speaks of irrigation expansion, productivity booster kits, and increased household incomes.
Yet, history teaches us that the regime's glossy promises often conceal exploitative realities.
Just as indigenisation was once sold as economic emancipation but turned into a looting spree by the powerful, so too this title deeds programme risks becoming another vehicle for wealth transfer to the ruling elite.
The irony is stark.
For decades, the ruling party justified the land reform programme on the basis of righting historical wrongs and empowering the indigenous majority.
But now, those same beneficiaries are being manipulated into paying for illegal papers, borrowing against them in a hostile economy, and potentially losing their land to financiers linked to the regime.
It is the cruelest betrayal of the very people the land reform was meant to uplift.
At its core, this entire scheme is a political illusion.
Mnangagwa wants to project the image of a forward-thinking leader delivering security of tenure and modernizing agriculture.
He knows that the rhetoric of ownership resonates deeply with farmers long haunted by the fear of dispossession.
Yet, he also knows that without constitutional amendments, without economic reforms that make agriculture viable, and without protection for vulnerable farmers, these title deeds are worthless at best and dangerous at worst.
Zimbabwe's farmers must ask themselves hard questions.
If the Constitution clearly says the land belongs to the state, what exactly are they buying when they pay for these documents?
If the economic climate is so unstable that loan repayment is precarious, why would the government encourage them to use land as collateral?
And if powerful figures like Tagwirei are positioned to profit from defaults, is this truly about empowering the people - or is it about enriching a well-connected few?
The tragedy is that once again, ordinary Zimbabweans may find themselves pawns in a political chess game, their hopes of security dangled before them only to be dashed in the end.
The regime has mastered the art of playing psychological games with the public, offering tokens of empowerment that lack substance while extracting money, loyalty, and ultimately land from those too vulnerable to resist.
If Zimbabwe is to truly build a strong, resilient, and prosperous agricultural sector, it must begin with honesty.
That means acknowledging what the Constitution says, reforming the laws transparently if genuine change is intended, and creating an economic environment where farmers can succeed without being set up for failure.
Anything less is a betrayal - and Mnangagwa's title deeds programme, in its current form, is nothing but a cruel and cynical betrayal of the very people it claims to serve.
● Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/
President Emmerson Mnangagwa's recent handover of title deeds to 1,000 farmers at Craigengower Farm in Mazowe was celebrated by his regime as a landmark moment in securing the future of Zimbabwe's agricultural sector.
To directly receive articles from Tendai Ruben Mbofana, please join his WhatsApp Channel on: https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaqprWCIyPtRnKpkHe08
In his speech, the President painted a glowing picture of how these title deeds would supposedly unlock opportunities for farmers, allowing them to access loans, invest in mechanisation, and contribute billions to the national economy.
To the unsuspecting eye, this initiative appears noble, even visionary.
Yet, beneath the pomp and rhetoric lies a troubling reality: this entire scheme rests on shaky legal ground, raises questions about political intentions, and carries the real risk that farmers could lose their land while believing they are being empowered.
The starting point must be the Constitution itself, the supreme law of the land.
Sections 72(4) and 72(5) are crystal clear: all agricultural land in Zimbabwe belongs to the state, and no private ownership is permitted.
When the land reform programme was launched in the early 2000s, all previous title deeds to agricultural land were cancelled.
Since then, the law has only allowed the state to issue permits, offer letters, or leases - not title deeds.
For Mnangagwa's government to issue title deeds without amending the Constitution is not only unlawful but a cynical deception of farmers desperate for security of tenure.
As legal experts such as Advocate Fadzayi Mahere have argued, these so-called title deeds are nothing more than worthless pieces of paper with no legal force.
No serious financial institution will recognize them as collateral.
So why would the government persist in pushing a programme it knows to be unconstitutional and invalid?
The answer is politics and money.
On the political front, Mnangagwa is desperate to win the allegiance of beneficiaries of the land reform programme, in the midst of waning support by a disillusioned citizenry.
By handing over "title deeds," he cultivates the illusion of security and empowerment, making farmers believe they finally own their plots.
This is classic psychological manipulation, timed to shore up loyalty in a period where his regime faces widespread discontent and declining credibility.
But there is a darker dimension.
These title deeds are not being given freely; farmers are required to pay substantial sums for them.
While official figures remain vague, reports indicate that the amounts are far from negligible.
This effectively makes the scheme a fundraising exercise by a cash-strapped state.
Instead of empowering farmers, it is duping them into paying for documents that cannot withstand constitutional scrutiny.
This is the first layer of exploitation.
The second, and more insidious, layer is the risk of land dispossession.
Mnangagwa has marketed the deeds as "bankable instruments" that farmers can use to access credit.
In a stable economy with affordable financing and predictable returns from agriculture, such an arrangement might indeed spur growth.
But Zimbabwe is no such economy.
The financial environment is highly volatile, inflation erodes incomes, inconsistent policies, and farming is already a high-risk venture plagued by erratic rains, lack of inputs, and unstable markets.
The likelihood that many farmers will fail to repay loans is very high.
Once default occurs, and the so-called title deeds are used as collateral, what becomes of the land?
Far from empowering them, the scheme could pave the way for widespread land loss, this time not to white settlers but to politically connected elites hiding behind banks and corporations.
One wonders if it is just a coincidence that Kudakwashe Tagwirei, Mnangagwa's close ally and one of the wealthiest men in Zimbabwe, has been placed at the helm of the Land Tenure Implementation Committee, the body overseeing this entire programme.
Tagwirei, who has acquired significant stakes in banks such as CBZ and ZB, stands to benefit directly.
These banks are among those most likely to extend loans to farmers using these so-called title deeds.
Should farmers default, the land could easily end up in the portfolios of institutions effectively controlled by Tagwirei and his associates.
In essence, the government has set up a trap where land is funneled from poor farmers to the politically connected elite under the guise of "bankable security."
This is nothing short of a new land grab, cleverly disguised as empowerment.
Moreover, the timing and presentation of the programme cannot be ignored.
Mnangagwa has couched it in the grandiose rhetoric of Vision 2030, food sovereignty, and climate-smart agriculture.
He speaks of irrigation expansion, productivity booster kits, and increased household incomes.
Yet, history teaches us that the regime's glossy promises often conceal exploitative realities.
Just as indigenisation was once sold as economic emancipation but turned into a looting spree by the powerful, so too this title deeds programme risks becoming another vehicle for wealth transfer to the ruling elite.
The irony is stark.
For decades, the ruling party justified the land reform programme on the basis of righting historical wrongs and empowering the indigenous majority.
But now, those same beneficiaries are being manipulated into paying for illegal papers, borrowing against them in a hostile economy, and potentially losing their land to financiers linked to the regime.
It is the cruelest betrayal of the very people the land reform was meant to uplift.
At its core, this entire scheme is a political illusion.
Mnangagwa wants to project the image of a forward-thinking leader delivering security of tenure and modernizing agriculture.
He knows that the rhetoric of ownership resonates deeply with farmers long haunted by the fear of dispossession.
Yet, he also knows that without constitutional amendments, without economic reforms that make agriculture viable, and without protection for vulnerable farmers, these title deeds are worthless at best and dangerous at worst.
Zimbabwe's farmers must ask themselves hard questions.
If the Constitution clearly says the land belongs to the state, what exactly are they buying when they pay for these documents?
If the economic climate is so unstable that loan repayment is precarious, why would the government encourage them to use land as collateral?
And if powerful figures like Tagwirei are positioned to profit from defaults, is this truly about empowering the people - or is it about enriching a well-connected few?
The tragedy is that once again, ordinary Zimbabweans may find themselves pawns in a political chess game, their hopes of security dangled before them only to be dashed in the end.
The regime has mastered the art of playing psychological games with the public, offering tokens of empowerment that lack substance while extracting money, loyalty, and ultimately land from those too vulnerable to resist.
If Zimbabwe is to truly build a strong, resilient, and prosperous agricultural sector, it must begin with honesty.
That means acknowledging what the Constitution says, reforming the laws transparently if genuine change is intended, and creating an economic environment where farmers can succeed without being set up for failure.
Anything less is a betrayal - and Mnangagwa's title deeds programme, in its current form, is nothing but a cruel and cynical betrayal of the very people it claims to serve.
● Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to WhatsApp or Call: +263715667700 | +263782283975, or email: mbofana.tendairuben73@gmail.com, or visit website: https://mbofanatendairuben.news.blog/
Source - Tendai Ruben Mbofana
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