Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. ZANU PF has demanded that all illegal land occupations, sale or parcelling out of land and stands, as well as illegal developments, on communal, local authority and State land stop forthwith.
In a statement issued on Saturday, 30 December, ZANU PF acting Secretary-General Patrick Chinamasa warned land barons masquerading as ZANU PF members to stop their illegal activities. Said Chinamasa:
ZANU PF is alarmed at the mushrooming and proliferation of illegal occupations and settlements on communal, local authority and State land in and around major towns and cities, rural service centres and growth points, and perpetrated by land barons, some of whom are masquerading as ZANU PF supporters and, through use of name dropping, falsely suggest that their illegal activities have the authority and blessings of ZANU PF.
Yet other land barons are using doctored and falsified documents as one of the strategies to mislead innocent stand buyers to part with their hard-earned cash.
ZANU PF demands that all illegal land occupations, illegal sale or parcelling out of land or stands and illegal land developments should stop forthwith and calls upon law enforcement agencies to enforce the law and bring any perpetrators to book.
Chinamasa said no land in the country should be considered to have no administering authority. He said:
Communal land is administered under the Communal Lands Act and is vested in the President of the Republic. State land is also vested in the President and administered variously under the ministries…
Other land fall under the jurisdiction of local authority councils. Finally, there is land which falls under private ownership.
Therefore, any occupation, settlement or development of any land requires the lawful authorisation of the relevant planning authority which has jurisdiction over such land.
The ZANU PF Treasurer-General said illegal activities by land barons were prevalent in Mashonaland West, Mashonaland East and Manicaland provinces.
He said in Manicaland, action had been taken against five party members over illegal land deals.
The illegal activities of land barons have resulted in the mushrooming of shanty settlements across the country and the construction of homes on wetlands and riverbanks in urban areas.
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