By Charles Saungweme
Let me assure the nation, the poor people of Zimbabwe, that the law is crystal clear. A Section 8(1) order of acquisition acquires land.
Please take note of the terms acquires. That mean the land can be allocated and vest in the state.
The Minister of Lands after issuing a Section 8 (1) order can only withdraw the acquisition within 6 months from the date of publication of the order.
So, challenging that Section 8 order in 2020, some 9 years later is wrong. But don’t blame Ministers.
In terms of the law, a Section 8 (1) order can be revoked in terms of section 10A of the Land Acquisition Act within 6 months. That means the Minister cannot withdraw anything after 6 months.
That section will prove why now the Deeds Office is trying to issue an affidavit.
The rich guys have turned themselves into ‘corporate land barons’ and they use money to bulldoze Cooperatives. This is not the only case in Harare.
There is another one in the High Court but the corporate land barons are facing serious setback. This will backfire.
Lack of Institutional Memory
The state lands office at Makombe has no institutional memory. The office has lost more land to corporate land barons.
The office has no data enough to back up all the 40 pieces of land acquired for it in 2004.
So the confusion supra is inevitable due to that weakness.
Ministry of Land fired and restructured its office some time ago, thanks to the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Resettlement and John Basera for the good job.
Still there remains the mess.
The Ministry of Lands relied on information in the Deeds Office to acquire properties, that Ministry did not guess information on the gazettes.
What this means in plain language is that in July 2011 a Deed in the name of Marimba Properties was in the Deed Registry full stop.
Cooperativers therefore should unite to save themselves. If they divide, the company will milk them and no one will help them.
So, investing in strong legal resistance is key. The company will cause arrests, but be ready to stand strong; it’s not easy to fight rich people.
This is a simple analysis of the law.
The companies will file more cases in the courts so that by luck residents can fail to pay legal fees and get default judgements, motosimba varume.
Varombo motobatana kuzvibatsira.
No one will look at you. Zvikomo zvinotambidzana mhute, batsirai vana avo vatambura.
City of Harare siyai kupa mapermit asina kurongeka. Section 40(3) does not apply over that land. Rimwe gore tichazokurukura. Knowledge is power.
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