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Operation Murambatsvina - Countrywide evictions of urban poor - Index of articles
Over $20m required for plans' approval
The
Herald (Zimbabwe)
July 20, 2005
http://www.herald.co.zw/index.php?id=45335&pubdate=2005-07-20
RESIDENTS of
Harare's low-density suburbs, who want to regularise their properties'
plans, will have to fork out at least $23 million to the Harare
City Council for approval.
Council officials
at different district offices in the capital city yesterday said
those with illegal structures at their properties have to pay at
least $23 million to regularise them.
The officials
said the figure was the fine council had set.
Those who lost
their plans and want their buildings to be regularised have to pay
a searching fee of $150 000.
"There
are some residents who have already regularised their plans and
these have been approved after they paid the money. The money is
like a fine to people who built illegal structures that were not
approved at their premises.
"The regularisation
is a cumbersome process though," said a Harare City Council
official at Mount Pleasant district office.
A Vainona resident,
who had just paid the $23 million to regularise the plan of her
home, said it was better to pay the money instead of having to demolish
her three cottages.
Other district
offices in several low-density suburbs were deserted except for
residents who wanted to pay their monthly rates and water charges.
Residents of
Harare's low-density suburbs have welcomed the temporary suspension
of demolitions of illegal structures under Operation Murambatsvina
saying it would give them enough time to locate their house plans
and regularise illegal structures.
The Harare City
Council has said residents who lost their plans should look for
an architect who would re-draw a plan and present them to council
for approval.
It costs at
least $3 million for an architect to draw the plan of a three bedroomed
house for a low-density area.
The Minister
of Local Government, Public Works and Urban development, Cde Ignatius
Chombo, on Friday announced that the demolition of illegal structures
in low-density suburbs had been temporarily suspended and owners
of such structures were given 10 working days starting on Monday
to regularise them.
The clean-up
operation that kicked off in high-density suburbs countrywide at
the end of May saw illegally constructed shacks, tuckshops and home
industries being demolished. The Government is undertaking a massive
housing project with a view to accommodating the people who have
been affected by the clean-up operation so far.
Last week, Government
acquired at least 9 000 more hectares of land from peri-urban farms
for urban expansion.
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