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Reports carried by this paper yesterday that there were irregularities in the allocation of farms during land reforms may appear a discovery to some people, yet these are issues that two previous land audits unearthed years ago.
The Dr Charles Utete and Minister Flora Buka commissions unearthed numerous irregularities, ranging from giving land to undeserving people, to double allocation of land, and multiple farm ownership.
Now we hear from Lands and Rural Resettlement Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora that 10-year-olds were allocated farms. Many of these irregularities have been talked about for years, with previous lands ministers endlessly talking about them. Little attention has been paid to corrective action.
We all know what the irregularities are and it surely adds no value to our socio-economic development to continue talking about them without rectifying them. It appears every minister appointed to the lands portfolio talks about the irregularities and leaves without taking any corrective measures.
Our biggest problem seems to be that of inaction and hesitancy. We are very much excited talking about the problems and do not show equal excitement tackling the irregularities.
If the zeal we show in talking about problems was the same we had talking about solutions, then indeed, we would have a long time ago dealt with many of these issues surrounding land reform.
Even where it is very clear there are multiple farm owners, where there is no doubt undeserving people were given land and where double allocations are causing disputes, we move at a snail’s pace to tackle the problems.
What is now needed is decisive action to correct the anomalies. That is all what is needed. It should not matter what position a person holds in society; Government must be firm in dealing with multiple farm ownership and undeserved allocations.
Action should be without fear or favour.
There are many people who are clamouring for land and yet some among us are holding onto several farms that we are not even using productively.
Multiple farm owners are known, cases of double allocations are known and even the 10 year-olds that were given farms are known. What Government must be doing is repossessing the “extra” farms and reclaiming those given to undeserving people so that they can be redistributed in a transparent manner.
Further, some sort of action must be taken against those people who have for years been holding onto land knowing fully well they do not deserve it and this should be more so for senior Government officials who should be custodians of the law and State policy.
Over and above that, the lands officers and other Government officials who have colluded in the creation of these anomalies must be probed and appropriate action taken against them.
It is our earnest hope that Dr Mombeshora will be bold enough to do that which needs to be done so that we can start unlocking the maximum benefits from the very noble land reform programme.
There is no dispute among right-thinking Zimbabweans that land reforms indeed empowered thousands of hitherto landless people and that many farmers have been able to make a living from this resource.
Therefore, let the resource be made available to as many deserving people as possible.
Online Reporter
dyton mupawaenda