ZIMBABWEANS should brace for more invasions of black-owned farms to correct land ownership inequalities among the majority, war veterans’ leader Jabulani Sibanda has said.
NQOBANI NDLOVU STAFF REPORTER
Sibanda yesterday declared “war” on black farmers with multiple farms or big farms saying war veterans would not allow any black person to have more land than others. The combative war veterans’ leader made the remarks in response to an inquiry by our sister paper Southern Eye on whether his association had sanctioned ongoing invasions of black-owned farms.
Sibanda said war veterans had not sanctioned black-on-black farm invasions, but at the same time indicated that they would “not be colonised by other blacks”. “I have no report of the on-going farm invasions of black-owned farms and it is difficult for me to condemn or condone them. We do not have such an operation as war veterans,” Sibanda said.
“However, this is not to say we will fold our hands and allow other blacks to have multiple farms or excess land while others have nothing. No, this we will not allow.
“We will not allow any black person to have more land than others. We will not be colonised by any other black person.
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“We don’t care whether they are ministers, Zanu PF officials or have a military background because that alone is not an excuse to have more land than any other black person.”
President Robert Mugabe’s repeated calls for party officials to adhere to the one-man-one farm policy and limiting farm sizes have largely been ignored. A number of Zanu PF ministers, officials, police and army chiefs are reported to be stubbornly clinging on to their many farms after grabbing several thousands of hectares of properties.
“This is a struggle; this is war against multiple black farm owners. Some of them have farms registered under the names of their children who are not even in the country.
“We will take such farms and redistribute them. We are against land hoarders and people who have too much land; excess land to be precise,” Sibanda said.
It was not clear if Sibanda and the other war veterans would also act against the likes of First Lady Grace Mugabe, who now owns vast tracts of land in the prime farming area of Mazowe.
Grace recently threatened Justice deputy minister Fortune Chasi for daring her to stop further grabbing more land in the area for the benefit of ordinary villagers and other farmers in the area.