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Local
government ministry orders destruction of 10,000 homes
Tererai Karimakwenda, SW Radio Africa
October 18, 2013
http://www.swradioafrica.com/2013/10/18/local-government-ministry-orders-destruction-of-10000-homes/
The chaos and
corruption that surrounds the allocation of land by the Local Government
Ministry has struck again, and this time in Chitungwiza, where the
local Council has been ordered
to destroy at least 10,000 houses.
According to
the Daily News newspaper, the directive came from the Local Government
Ministry. The paper quoted Chitungwiza’s newly-appointed Mayor,
Philip Mutoti, as saying: “There is an order that we destroy
at least 10,000 houses built illegally.”
But there was
no proposal of alternative housing for the thousands of people who
would become homeless, should the directive be carried out.
The houses at
risk in Chitungwiza have been deemed “illegal” by officials
because they were built on wetlands and some are above sewer main
pipes. But questions are being asked as to who allocated the plots
in the first place and how could so many homes have been constructed
without officials being involved.
Arthur Taderera
from the Chitungwiza Residents and Ratepayers Association (CHRRA)
described the directive as “perpetuating madness”, and
criticized both the Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo and
the Chitungwiza Council, for allowing the situation to get to this
point.
“How can
you have 10,000 houses coming up without the officials noticing
it. They may say it was done corruptly, but it was through officials
so you cannot punish the victim at both ends,” Taderera explained.
He added: “Who
gave the people the stands in the first place? And if it was the
Council, then why should they turn around now and want to destroy
houses which have already been built before they build other houses
for those people to get into.”
Taderera said
it would be another “Murambatsvina”
if the houses were destroyed, making reference to the government
ordered destruction of homes and livelihoods that displaced nearly
a million people in 2005.
“It was
the most inhumane thing I have ever witnessed in my life and we
as an Association would not want to see that.”
The activist
also accused the Ministry of “perpetuating” corruption
by allocating stands to families for cash, and then evicting them
in order to make more money from the same stands.
Explaining the
corruption further Taderera said: “First it was corruptly
given. And now they are destroying it so that they can again corruptly
allocate that same stand because they know those people will pay
more money if it happens that way.”
Taderera described
the Ministry of Local Government as “the mother ministry”,
saying none of the corrupt deals could possibly be done without
their knowledge.
But the Local
Government Minister Ignatius Chombo continues to function with impunity.
He suspended several Harare councillors who investigated corrupt
land deals that he was implicated in around the capital. And it
appears he is stamping his authority in Chitungwiza as well.
SW Radio
Africa is Zimbabwe's Independent Voice and broadcasts on Short Wave
4880 KHz in the 60m band.
Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.
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