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| author/source:Zim Online (SA) |
| published:Sun 26-Sep-2004 |
| posted on this site:Sun 26-Sep-2004 |
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| Article Type : News |
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| The government yesterday gave six companies and estate firms 90 days to give up more than one million hectares of land in a fresh campaign to seize corporate-owned land |
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Harare - The government yesterday gave six companies and estate firms 90 days to give up more than one million hectares of land in a fresh campaign to seize corporate-owned land. The conglomerates were issued with Section 8 Orders, which under the government's Land Acquisition Act gives management and staff three months to wind up operations and leave the properties. A list published in yesterday's government gazette showed that the state was compulsorily acquiring subdivision E of Arlington estate, measuring 530 255 hectares. The land is owned by cement manufacturing giant, Portland Cement. The state also listed for seizure Lot 2 of Saturday Retreat estate, measuring 22 077 hectares, the remainder of Cerney Township, measuring 46 233 hectares, and New Cennety Township 2, measuring 63,8 hectares. The three properties are owned by Crest Breeders, which in turn is owned by CFI Holdings, a company in which embattled business mogul and former Zanu PF ally, Mutumwa Mawere, has a major stake.
The government has in the last three weeks seized Mawere's multi-million dollar asbestos mines and other ventures after falling out with the businessman. The Zimbabwe Stock Exchange-listed Mashonaland Holdings is set to lose Eyrecourt farm and Acorn Estates to the state, while the Zimbabwe Tobacco Association, which brings together the country's mostly white large-scale tobacco growers will have to give up its 605 809 hectare farm on the outskirts of Harare. Cigarette maker, Rothmans will also have to surrender to the state 100 313 hectares of land in Lochinvar, just outside Harare city centre. The government did not give reasons why it was now turning on corporate-owned farms most of which are productive commercial ventures or were being reserved for expansion purposes. When the government launched its chaotic and often violent programme to seize white-owned land for redistribution to blacks in 2000, it said it was not going to take land owned by agro-based companies, plantation and estate firms and churches.
The government last month appeared to backtrack on its word when it seized land owned by Mhangura Copper Mines and another farm owned by Buffalo Range Properties. The government has also issued a Section 8 Order on Mkwasine Estate, a sugar-growing estate jointly owned by South Africa's Anglo American Corporation and Tongaat Hullet. Other companies that have also lost land to the government in the last month include Zimbabwe's sole fertiliser manufacturing company, Sable Chemicals. The Wattle Company, which produces wattle trees used by Zimbabwe's sole paper making company, Mutare Board and Paper, to manufacture paper had some of its plantations also gazetted for acquisition. Executives at some of the firms, who did not want to be named, said the seizure of their land had forced them to scale down operations on the farms because of uncertainty. "Some of the companies have literally closed shop while others are working out plans to move away to safe warehouses equipment on the farms some of which was financed through loans," said one executive. Under state land acquisition laws, owners are not allowed to remove equipment from a farm once the government has issued a Section 8 Order on the property. Barclays Bank of Zimbabwe lost billions of dollars worth of equipment invested at Kondozi Farm in Manicaland province, when the farm was taken over by the state's Agricultural and Rural Development Authority earlier this year.
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