Mchinji community feels short-changed over land

What appeared to be a moment of triumph for communities around Tichitenji Estate in Mchinji after a court ordered former official hostess Mama Cecelia Tamanda Kadzamira out has turned into a nightmare. Now that dust has settled after the High Court of Malawi ruled last December that founding president Hastings Kamuzu Banda’s confidante does not own the land as it belongs to the Elliot Kaphwiti Banda family, the people have woken up to realise that they cannot access their customary land close to the estate. This is the case because Kadzamira obtained a court order to stop execution of the judgement pending an appeal, leaving the villagers who glowed with hope of owning the land delinked from the registered farm for subsistence use cursing the effects of the dispute.

Tichitenji Farm, located in Traditional Authority Kawere, sits on 960 acres. However, an appeal on the determination has thwarted planned efforts to demarcate the land for allocation to the villagers, something that would have given them a farming lifeline. Chief Kawere has since expressed concern over the development.

“We are surprised because the court ordered that the land belongs to the community, but the restraining order includes us with Elias Kaphwiti Banda estate. This has held us back on all the plans we had going forward,” he said. Presenting a petition to Mchinji district commissioner Reinghard Chavula on Wednesday, the chief asked government to intervene to delink the portion declared as customary land.

[paywall]

In an interview during a visit to the farm, group village heads (GVHs) Mpindo and Mateyo as well as village head Petulo said people around the farm have no land and are going hungry every year with no support from authorities. Said GVH Mpindo: “The whole land is just being subleased to people from Dedza, Salima, Lilongwe and Blantyre. These people do not even hire people from this area to work on the fields and get something with which to support their families.” During the visit, The Nation found dejected villagers gathered in groups as they shared their concerns.

Chief Kawere pleaded with Chavula to facilitate the release of the customary land for his people. But the DC said she could not do anything on the matter until it is concluded in the Malawi Supreme Court of Appeal. The High Court in December ruled that the Kaphwiti Banda family is the lawful owner of Tichitenji Estate, effectively dismissing ownership claim by Kadzamira. Court records show that Kaphwiti Banda secured ownership of the land in 1968 at Kadzamira Village, T/A Kawere in Mchinji.

[/paywall]