THE Agricultural Rural Development Authority (Arda) has vowed to press ahead with its plans to evict scores of villagers at its Antelope Estate in Matobo, Matabeleland South, after entering into a deal with a private company to resuscitate farming activities. BY PRIVILEGE SHOKO
Some of the villagers say they have lived in the area since the colonial era and are worried that Arda is not providing them with compensation.
Arda recently engaged Trek Petroleum to revive the estate and the deal has heightened tension at the estate as villagers have vowed that they will not be forced to move.
On Tuesday Arda general manager William Mbona told villagers during a heated meeting that they had illegally occupied the land and it was now time that they moved.
“We all know that it has almost been three years since the estate ceased to operate normally because of lack of money, water, electricity and other problems and we realised that we should look for investors,” he said.
“Trek Petroleum will occupy 600 hectares of land and utilise 113 ha for outgrowers’ schemes and this will increase to 1 900 ha.
“People will have to be removed from the land where they settled illegally because they were told that they should not live on that land as it belonged to Arda.”
Mbona appealed to the villagers to welcome Trek saying the company would be a catalyst for the development of the community.
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“We should welcome Trek because if we start fighting the company will end up giving up and go with its money and nothing will come out of the deal.”
However, the villagers said they were not happy with the way Arda was approaching the issue. Philani Sibanda, a village head, said Trek had started taking over people’s fields.
“We are not saying we don’t want development in this region, but you should respect us in our land. Your investor has started going to the people in the villages saying that they will be removed,” Sibanda said.
“The issue of land pegs should be taken seriously. We lobbied for the development of the estate, but we have not benefited from it.”
Another villager said Arda was using colonial era boundaries to push the off their land.
“We went to the liberation struggle because of this land and now you are coming back with these people so that they take our land,” said the villager who requested to remain anonymous.
“We have no grazing land and you are now talking about taking our fields.
Pastor Anglistone Sibanda urged Arda to be cautious when dealing with the issue saying it was sensitive.
“We are surrounded by mountains and national parks,” he said.
“The land you want to take over was allocated to people over 50 years ago.
“We have other irrigation (schemes) that are lying idle in the district. We don’t want a repeat of the Chisumbanje conflict here.”
Arda is embroiled in a land dispute with Chisumbanje villagers in Manicaland after it entered into a joint venture with Green Fuel for its ethanol project.
The villagers are unhappy with alleged unfulfilled promises of compensation and employment.
