adminYeukai Karengezeka
Herald Correspondent
It is around mid-morning, Chenai (not her real name) is coming out of a one-roomed house, holding dirty plates and her three-year-old son follows behind.
Just 2 metres from the house, is a graveyard under the Chitungwiza Municipality called Nyatsime Cemetery.
The baby starts walking towards the cemetery playing alone and the mother does not seem moved. Everything seems normal to her and she continues with her chores.
Upon being approached by this reporter she became unsettled seeking to understand the intention of the visit.
Chenai told The Herald that she has been living in the area for the past five years. “There is nothing awkward about staying close to the graves. My family has become used to this environment, and what matters most is that we own the place.
“I bought my stand from the council in 2006, but l was evicted by some land barons who claimed ownership of the same stand and l relocated to this area,” she said.
Efforts to understand why the settlers are living adjacent to the graves were unsuccessful as most shunned talking to the media.
Cemeteries are generally considered sacred places which should be treated with respect and honour, but people have become desperate for shelter to an extent of erecting temporary shelters within the cemetery.
Chitungwiza is facing a grave crisis. The town’s cemetery, Nyatsime, had been overrun by illegal settlers, leaving the local authority scrambling to find space for the deceased.
Recently, Chitungwiza acting housing director, Mr Tendai Chinganga, told stakeholders during a strategic plan review workshop that the local authority was facing the risk of running out of land for cemeteries due to continuous invasions by illegal settlers.
“At Nyatsime Cemetery we have a big challenge of illegal settlers who are continuing to encroach into the cemetery.
“We run the risk of running out of grave space. We will be lucky to go to the year 2025 still having some land if nothing is done to address the issue,” he said.
In the past the municipality experienced litigation from residents when they tried to evict them on the basis of human rights, yet they are also infringing the rights of the deceased.
However, residents living in the affected area have a different story to tell. They are blaming the council for failing to demarcate the cemetery.
A resident, Mr Pembaton Runesu, who lives near the cemetery, accused Chitungwiza Municipality of encroaching into residential houses by allocating graves.
“Our situation is sad and our living environment is not normal. What l know is that among us are people with full council papers that are living in this area. It is council that is continuously extending their cemetery to where we are staying, yet there is vast land they can extend to,” he said.
Nyatsime Area chairman Mr Jeremiah Mambingadya said the council’s inaction had led to the anarchy.
“There are over 12 800 households in this area, but the set up is not right and council authorities are the culprits.
“However, l want to thank President Mnangagwa for introducing the master plan which we believe will bring order,” said.
Chitungwiza Municipality spokesperson, Mr Tafadzwa Kachiko, said the council was seized with the Nyatsime issue and would take appropriate measures to address the challenges.
“We are taking appropriate steps to address the issue and it is premature to disclose our next step. There is clearly a laid-out map for the cemetery. Council is losing sleep over invasions of Nyatsime cemetery by desperate home seekers who get allocated stands by alleged land barons.”
Mr Kachiko also said they had blocked several attempts to invade the cemetery in the past by demolishing some illegal structures that had mushroomed in June this year.
They were stopped by court order after some residents filed an appeal against the move at the courts.
In the next year, Mr Kachiko said council was going to be making some developments in Nyatsime near Njikiza Shopping Centre.
They also intend to set up administration offices and make it a stand-alone district equal to the existing Zengeza, St Mary’s, Seke North and Seke South.
Beyond the cemetery crisis, residents faced pressing health and education challenges, including lack of boreholes, clinics and Government schools.
Mrs Revai Fombe said the main health challenges that they were facing were lack of boreholes and bowsers with only one borehole servicing people in the Nyatsime-Njikiza area.
“We don’t have a clinic in this area and it’s difficult to get assistance as patients either have to go to Chitungwiza Hospital or St Mary’s Clinic. Other women end up giving birth in their homes,” she said.
Mrs Moleen Nheweyembwa said they do not have any Government schools in the area with children having to cross over to study at Government schools in other areas and some children were run over by cars trying to cross the busy roads.
Another resident, Ms Lucias Matemba, called on the Government to establish market stalls so that people could engage in business.
Online Reporter