A prime piece of farmland on the outskirts of Marondera has become the centre of a storm after it emerged that top Marondera Municipality officials, allegedly armed with a fake offer letter purportedly signed by former Local Government minister Saviour Kasukuwere, moved in to seize the property from its rightful owner — war veteran John Fadzisayi Jani — without following due process Investigations by Truth Diggers reveal that the disputed property — Elmswood Farm — was allocated to Jani under the land reform programme on February 20, 2007 and the war veteran holds genuine government-issued documents confirming his ownership In a letter dated January 27, 2025, the Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development ministry’s permanent secretary Obert Jiri confirmed Jani as the lawful owner, further stating there had been no lawful transfer of the land to the Local Government ministry or Marondera Municipality in line with the Lands Act “Please be advised that the offer letter for the above named farm remains extant,” wrote Jiri
“The farm measures 468,40 hectares and was allocated to John F Jani on February 20, 2007 Despite this, municipal officials allegedly continue parcelling out residential stands under what sources describe as “unclear and irregular circumstances.”
“They are riding on a fake letter with Kasukuwere’s name, but it’s obvious it’s a fraudulent document,” said a source familiar with the dispute “The farm was never handed over officially by the Lands ministry “This is a straight-up land grab,”
According to documents and interviews, there was no gazetted order or Cabinet approval authorising the conversion of the farm into urban land — a requirement under Zimbabwe’s laws before agricultural land can be repurposed
No official handover took place between the Lands ministry and the Local Government ministry, as stipulated under the Lands Act, investigations revealed Nevertheless, since November 2024, the council has been dishing out stands, raising fears of corruption, political patronage and personal enrichment by municipal executives In an interview, Jani expressed shock and frustration at the turn of events “I invested heavily in this land
I have been left with nothing, and my operations have collapsed It is like watching my life’s work go up in smoke,” Jani said He said he had already drawn up plans to convert the farm into residential stands — a project he hoped would create jobs, bring infrastructure, and help ease the country’s housing shortage Source: The Standard Zimbabwe
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Source: Thestandard
