When bulldozers rolled into Mushandike, Masvingo province, in early 2024, the life that Esther Mativenga had painstakingly built was reduced to rubble in a matter of minutes.
“It is like a
thief in the night stole everything,” she said, struggling to contain the pain
she still endures.
“This was not
just a house; it was our future. We poured everything we had into it, believing
sabhuku’s word.”
Esther’s ordeal
is part of a much larger crisis unfolding across Zimbabwe, where illegal land
allocations by some traditional leaders — known locally as sabhukus — are
leaving families uprooted, penniless and homeless.
While the
Mushandike incident grabbed headlines, similar tragedies are being reported
throughout the country.
In Domboshava,
settlements sprout overnight, only to be declared illegal months later.
It is the same
case in Seke, where buyers discover too late that the letters of allocation
they received are worthless.
In Kadoma,
Chimanimani, Chihota and Gokwe, the same pattern repeats itself.
Most often, the
land is sold under the guise of custom in transactions that are not recognised
by the law.
Communities in
the Matabeleland region are not spared too.
Villagers in
Matobo and Lupane recount how plots were parcelled out by sabhukus without the
approval of rural district councils (RDCs).
In Nkayi and
Bulilima, desperate land seekers paid hefty fees, only to later realise that
their landholdings had no legal standing.
From Chiredzi
to Hwange, the evidence is clear: Sabhuku land deals are not isolated scams but
a nationwide phenomenon destabilising families and entire communities.
The headlines
may speak of demolitions and arrests, but behind each case are distraught
victims.
John Mbava, a
carpenter in Mushandike, had just completed a four-room home for his family
when it was demolished.
“They took away
more than bricks and mortar. They took away our hope,” he said.
Just outside
Harare, 49-year-old Jotamu Ruwona was charged around US$3 000 per hectare by
his sabhuku in Seke.
Only later did
he learn the allocation was fraudulent, with proceeds allegedly shared among
officials as kickbacks.
His family has
been left in limbo, unsure whether to abandon their investment or fight for
recognition.
These stories,
though separated by geography, have a common theme of ordinary Zimbabweans
desperate for land and paying the price for deals that are legally void from
the outset.
It has now
become common to witness upmarket houses tucked haphazardly among village
thatched huts, creating a pattern that indicates poor planning.
Legal and
planning experts argue this transformation stems from a thriving illegal land
market that flourishes due to cheap prices and ease of purchase. Areas mostly
affected are those surrounding Harare.
Lands,
Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Minister Dr Anxious Masuka
has since clarified the issue.
“Once again,
may I remind the public that, in terms of the Gazetted Lands (Consequential
Provisions) Act (Chapter 20:28), it is a crime to occupy rural State land
without authority. All illegal occupiers of such land should immediately vacate
rural State land. Failure to vacate may result in prosecution,” he said in a
recent statement.
His
counterpart, Local Government and Public Works Minister Daniel Garwe, also
shared the Government’s position.
“In Zimbabwe,
chiefs should follow the Customary Law and Local Courts Act, the Communal Lands
Act and the Constitution of the country. The chief should ensure that land is
preserved; no land should be sold through sabhuku deals,” he said.
However,
despite these clear directives, gaps in enforcement and limited awareness have
allowed sabhukus to exploit the system.
Many issue
letters on paper that bear signatures and stamps mimicking official RDC
letterheads, giving a false veneer of legitimacy.
Similarly,
there are reports that some parties do not enter into written agreements, even
though they pay the required money to the seller.
Miriam Tose
Majome, a lawyer and commissioner with the Zimbabwe Media Commission, argued in
a contribution to one of our sister papers that “No title deeds or valid
cessions are possible since all transactions violate the Communal Lands Act,
which restricts communal land to kinship-based allocation.
“Under Section
8, communal land cannot be sold and occupancy rights cannot be ceded without
proper authority . . . Section 3 vests communal land in the President, while
Section 8 prohibits sales and unauthorised transfers.
“Only the rural
district council, after consultation with traditional leaders, can allocate
land rights. Chiefs and headmen lack authority to authorise land sales, though
they may facilitate proper allocation procedures.”
Between January
and mid-February 2024, Operation “No to Land Barons and Illegal Settlements”
resulted in 3 775 arrests, of which 985 people were convicted, while the
remaining cases are before the courts.
Some of those
arrested were sabhukus themselves; others were land barons and illegal
settlers.
In Kadoma, for
example, Sabhuku Ignatius Tazvivinga, under Chief Mupamombe, faces fraud
charges for allegedly selling land owned by the Kadoma City Council.
He reportedly
collected around US$250 per buyer using forged affidavits to purportedly
legitimise the sales.
The
prosecutions are just a tip of the iceberg.
The demand for
land continues to outstrip supply, particularly around growth points and
peri-urban settlements, creating fertile ground for unscrupulous actors. Sunday
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