A STORM is brewing in Harare South’s Odar Housing Development Consortium (OHDC) where residents have threatened to disregard the new landowner Phillip Chiyangwa, alleging he acquired it corruptly.
Everson Mushava/Obey Manayiti
The consortium involving 56 companies claim they were given the 605 hectares of land which they developed under the Garikai Phase 2 in 2006 and were required to compensate the farm owners through the government.
The residents further claim the value of the compensation was supposed to come from government but they were shocked after Sensene Investments, a company linked to property magnet Chiyangwa claimed ownership of the land. Addressing thousands of residents in Southlea Park yesterday, OHDC chairman Benny Matenga urged beneficiaries to resist the takeover, claiming they were working towards paying compensation once the government announced the quantum.
The tense meeting was characterised by repeated name calling of Chiyangwa and demands for officials in the ministry of Local Government to be transparent in the manner they conducted their business. Matenga said anyone who wanted to involve themselves in the OHDC land would be met with resistance as they threatened to take the matter to President Mugabe, urging him to investigate Local Government officials who might have “corruptly” involved themselves in the matter.
Speaking to journalists during the meeting, Harry Muzondo, who is in the management committee of OHDC, said they were mobilising to block Chiyangwa.
“We are not going to comply with any order or instruction that seeks to interfere with our operations. The government cannot direct us to pay compensation to Chiyangwa or any other person,” said Muzondo.
“The ownership of the land vests in the State and only the acquirer, who is the President, can reverse the land acquisition process. There is a bogus agreement which alleges that the land is being given to Chiyangwa but as residents, we are saying if Chiyangwa failed to develop his other nearby properties why should he come to us where 70% of servicing is almost complete.”
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The consortium leaders warned members against working with Chiyangwa. “If there is any other member of the consortium engaging Chiyangwa outside our agreement, they are warned that they are doing so at their own risk and they will face the music,” he said. But Chiyangwa yesterday labelled the members “criminals.”
“I have reported to the police. They are criminals who want to play with my name. I am not going to answer to anything,” Chiyangwa said.
“I have title deeds to the land. You can go to the authorities that gave me. Why do you ask me about things that you don’t have proof [about]? It is like people seeing me walking about and saying I have HIV, who are they to say that? Are they doctors? Have they tested me?”
He said he would have been arrested a long time ago if he had acquired the land fraudulently.
Chiyangwa is now demanding $150 from each of the 8 000 beneficiaries as registration fee with his company, after which the stands would be revalued and current occupiers of the stands would be asked to pay the balance between the revalued amount and what they have already paid to Odar Consortium.
Matenga said yesterday that Chiyangwa was putting the value of the stands at $50 per square metre, which translated to about $10 000 for a 200 square metre stand, which is the average size of stands in the high density area of the farm.
Low density stands were being pegged at $16 per square metre while commercial and industrial stands were valued at between $100 and $250 per square metre.
Add to this, Chiyangwa is said to be demanding compensation for developments on the farm which value was yet to be determined by government according to the agreement between Odar and government.
“This is part of the reasons why we are taking Chiyangwa to court, besides the very fact that we do not agree that this farm belongs to him,” said Matenga.
