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Rutendo Nyeve, Sunday News Reporter
ZANU-PF Vice-President Cde Kembo Mohadi has assured former Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Army (ZPRA) combatants that they will soon be receiving back their properties with shareholders set to be issued with share certificates.
Cde Mohadi said this while addressing hundreds of Zanu-PF supporters at a rally for Emakhandeni-Luveve constituency which was held at Chigumira grounds in Bulawayo last Tuesday. The party’s Vice-President is facilitating the process where the Second Republic is engaging ex-ZPRA combatants as the war veterans seek to recover their properties in line with President Mnangagwa’s policy to address all issues arising from past conflicts. ZPRA was the military wing of PF ZAPU.
“I know there is the issue of ex ZPRA properties. We are on the issue and as you might know, we instructed them to form a committee that will facilitate this process. They supplied us with certain information that we wanted but I have since instructed the committee to look for something that I require,” said VP Mohadi.
While he did not disclose what he instructed the committee to do, chairperson of the committee Cde Volta Moyo said they were in the process of identifying the shareholders of the properties.
“We are at a stage where we are documenting shareholders. We are putting an office in the Central Business District (CBD) of Bulawayo where we will be operating from. All the ex-ZPRA cadres are going to be documented so that they are given share certificates. We are going to put together teams that will do the documentation of members in different districts. You might know that we have various groups that include widows and children of the departed heroes and heroines and we take into cognisance that everyone should benefit. We wish everything to be completed by September,” said Cde Moyo.
He said what was delaying the process was that some key stakeholders were involved in the elections, and once they were done with the process, they will then present all details to the Vice President.
“We are doing this cautiously because if due processes are not conducted adequately, there might be chaos. Should the caveat be lifted before all procedures, some combatants will not benefit. We have actually been witnessing some title deeds being tempered with hence we want everything properly done,” said Cde Moyo.
In the last few months, a 13-member committee which was tasked to look into the properties identified more than 80 properties and submitted their findings to Zanu-PF Vice-President Cde Mohadi. The committee was elevated into a board and instructed to categorise the properties.
According to a senior member, Colonel (Rtd) Tshinga Dube, when the country gained independence and the ZPRA combatants returned home, they were sent to seven assembly points. He said it was during this period that a decision was made that only a fraction of the fighters could be integrated as Government had decided that the new army (ZNA) could not carry more than 60 000 members.
A plan was then made for the thousands that were not integrated which saw them contributing a minimum of $50 each for the purposes of purchasing farms, buildings, and other commercial entities that would help them not fall into destitution.
However, due to the teething problems that the country went through between 1982 and 1987, some of the properties were confiscated by the then Government led by the then Prime Minister Robert Mugabe. — @nyeve14
Online Reporter