CHITUNGWIZA mayor Philip Mutoti has admitted to owning large tracts of prime land in the dormitory town, but said the transfer of the stands into his name was above board. by PAIDAMOYO MUZULU
“It’s true that I have a stand in Manyame Park and that the council has also given me part of the ground commonly known as Macheka Square,” Mutoti told NewsDay on Monday.
“The stands were given to me in line with the council’s resolutions that councillors should be given residential stands, commercial stands and industrial stands after serving a third of their term.”
However, Chitungwiza Residents’ Trust is arguing that Mutoti illegally dispossessed a resident, Sakhelene Mudunge, of the 2 000 square metre Manyame stand.
“The stand was initially allocated to Mudunge before the municipality illegally repossessed it without notifying the initial owner,” Chitrest said.
It added: “It was wrong for Mutoti to demolish Mudunge’s structures without offer her alternative land.”
Meanwhile, Mutoti said he was living in fear after militias from Zanu PF attacked him at his house for going ahead with land audits in the town that threaten the livelihoods of the land barons.
“On Thursday last week my family was attacked and I’m now afraid for the safety of my family,” Mutoti said.
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He, however, was reluctant to name the people behind the attacks.
“I can’t state anything beyond that I was attacked. It’s very dangerous as I cannot mention the name of the party to which they belong because it would affect the safety of my family,” he said.
Chitungwiza has the largest illegal structures in the country that forced the government to institute a comprehensive land audit in the town and the adjacent Seke communal lands.
The audit revealed that the majority of the land barons were from Zanu PF under the guise of housing cooperatives. The biggest culprit was a Zanu PF councillor Frederick Mabamba.
The town has since approached the High Court for an order to demolish most of the illegal structures especially those built under power lines, above sewer pipes and on wet lands.
The town is set to get six farms in Beatrice for expansion projects and the construction of a new city. However, some illegal settlers have already allocated themselves stands in the area before the official transfer of title deads of the farms to the local authority.
