Harare City Council (HCC) is forging ahead with plans to
demolish illegal structures in Harare South after a recent report indicated the
buildings were located on undesignated land.
The settlements that will be affected include Granville
Estate, The Rest, Churu, Lot 1 of Sub A of Lyndhurst, Nyarungu, Chizororo and
Eyestone.
However, city fathers have given a reprieve to settlers at
15 other properties, who are now expected to regularise their settlements.
Currently, there is an ongoing inquiry led by High Court
judge Justice Tendai Uchena into the sale of State land.
The probe is presently focussing on Harare. HCC town clerk
Engineer Hosiah Chisango recently told the Uchena-led commission that only
three land developers — Fidelity Life Assurance, National Building Society and
Hopley B Housing Cooperative — had followed due process in developing their
properties.
The city’s chief planner in the department of works, Mr
Samuel Nyabezi, also told the commission that a report commissioned by the
local authority through Macdoh Planning Consultancy indicated that a number of
structures were established on undesignated places.
It similarly recommended the demolition of the illegal
structures. Mr Nyabezi said: “There are two models of development that
are being employed there (Harare South). Government also has a parallel
development model, which allows people to settle while development of the land
continues. But even in the parallel development model, water and sewer systems
have to be there first before people settle. People who have not met city
requirements are well aware that they can be removed any time.”
The city usually recommends that a road network be
developed first before settlements begin. In the past, the ci ty has been accused of illegally
demolishing structures.
Harare Mayor Councillor Hebert Gomba, however, said the
city would not demolish any structure without a court order.
A new system through which home-seekers would pay directly
to the local authority, he added, would be established in order to prevent land
barons from preying on them.
“This new scheme is different in the sense that in the past
council would allocate a cooperative (land) and expected the cooperative to
take as much time as they want to put up infrastructure. Now it’s council
allocating land to a pay scheme, a congregation of individuals given allocation
letters individually. They collectively pool resources to build infrastructure,
and council is now the only institution allowed to look for contractors and
inspect progress of work. Each scheme has an account,” he said.
Chairperson of Harare South Housing Apex Cooperative
Society Mr Tonderai Nkomo said the City of Harare should conduct its planned
demolitions within the confines of the law.
He, however, questioned why Eyestone was being targeted.
“Eyestone has been in and out of the courts and there was a
High Court order stopping the city council from demolishing houses, so I am
shocked.
“Last month, we agreed to regularise things for the people
there and the city was ordered by High Court to compensate those whose houses
were demolished in 2017,” said Mr Nkomo.
The Uchena commission seeks to establish the number of
people who bought or benefited from State land, those who settled illegally, as
well as investigate multiple allocations.
So far, the Harare City Council, Civil Aviation Authority
of Zimbabwe, Environmental Management Agency, Ministries of Local Government,
Public Works and National Housing, as well as Lands, Agriculture, Water,
Climate and Rural Resettlement have appeared before the commission.
The probe is expected to wind up by October this year.
Sunday Mail
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