Ministry of Mines deploys geologists to Kwekwe

“We have always been aware that Kwekwe has rich gold deposits. In fact we even said it at our annual (Zanu-PF) conference held in Bulawayo that almost every district in the country has mineral deposits of some kind. We, however, want order to prevail. I am appealing to people to exercise restraint and patience and allow the team from my ministry to do its technical work before people can be allowed to move in,” he said.
Minister Mpofu said he took comfort after being assured by the Joint Operations Command (JOC) in the Midlands that there was enough security in the Sherwood gold claim area.
He said his ministry would only come up with a position on the find after the completion of the technical assessment.
“There are some individuals who are claiming that the claim in question is theirs. That is not true. The claim belongs to the State but as Government we are sensitive to the needs of the people. We will be looking at the merits and demerits when the full report is availed by our team,” said Minister Mpofu.
Meanwhile, the gold rush to Sherwood that started last week appeared to have calmed down by yesterday as the people took heed of the leadership’s call to be patient and allow for the paper work to be completed.
Chronicle visited the claim, which has since been nicknamed “Pahasha” by Kwekwe residents, and found about 50 youthful gold panners waiting patiently for a chance to get into the claim.
Sherwood farming area is situated about 20km outside the city of Kwekwe. The gold panners said they had been in the area since Friday last week but failed to gain access into the heavily guarded gold-bearing area.
A narrow passage formed by the two walls of a railway bridge is the entrance to the claim. The passage is so narrow that an inexperienced driver would find it difficult to drive a car through.
There were also some barricades at the entrance to enhance security. The news team failed to gain access into the claim as two police officers stood guard at the entrance.
“Hamusi kuita mukati umo mudhara (the situation is tight, sir). We are, however, waiting for the leaders to come up with a position that could result in us getting into the area where the alluvial gold is,” said one panner as he pointed in the general direction of the claim.
When the news crew challenged the group of panners to circumvent the two police officers who stood guard and go for the gold, they all shook their heads showing unwillingness.
“That will be more like committing suicide. There are some dangerous highly trained dogs that were let loose and roaming the forest where the claim is. Moreover, there are so many police officers and soldiers in that forest. So don’t even think about venturing in without being cleared by security,” warned another panner.
From the two police officers who stood guard, the news crew learnt that the panners were getting their provisions from some distant shops in the Sherwood farming area.
“As for bathing and other things, we do not know how they are coping but they have been surviving all these days,” said one of the police officers.
After confirming that it was almost impossible to gain entry into the claim, the news team decided to drive back to the city of Kwekwe.
On its way out, it met a number of trucks, all of which would stop with the motorists asking how the situation was like at “Pahasha” before they could proceed. It became apparent that everyone was treading with caution as the claim was under heavy security.
Meanwhile, a number of people were still gathered yesterday at the Zanu-PF Kwekwe district offices anticipating to be given the opportunity to go and pan for gold as syndicates.
They expected Dr Mpofu to address them before presenting them with a mining licence.
However, Dr Mpofu did not turn up owing to other commitments in Harare.
Zanu-PF provincial chairperson and Midlands provincial Governor Cde Jason Machaya said the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development was not going to issue a mining licence to prospective miners in Sherwood as individuals but would have them operate as syndicates.
“People will only move in as syndicates. That is the arrangement. Most of the concerns will be addressed at a JOC meeting to be held tomorrow (today). We will brief you of the findings and outcome,” he said.