PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe on Wednesday fiercely attacked army commanders, including major-generals, and senior Zanu PF officials for grabbing money-spinning safari landholdings in the treasured Save Valley Conservancy, the largest private wildlife sanctuary in the world.
Report by Faith Zaba
High-level sources told the Zimbabwe Independent yesterday Mugabe arrived at the Zanu PF politburo meeting on Wednesday in a “no-nonsense mood” and accused army commanders and top officials of being “greedy” for grabbing conservancies when they already owned farms seized from white commercial farmers evicted during the chaotic and violent land reform programme.
Politburo members said Mugabe quickly set the tone of the meeting, declaring all army commanders and senior party officials who invaded conservancies should move out immediately. He also ordered that to stop the divisive rush for safaris, all conservancies must now be turned into national parks.
This means there would be massive evictions of army commanders, ministers, senior civil servants and top Zanu PF officials from safari areas across the country which they had expropriated and were making a killing through hunting activities and even slaughtering animals to sell meat.
But their presence in conservancies was threatening to decimate flora and fauna, mainly wildlife targeted for minting money for private benefit. There is also a threat of environmental degradation.
Angered by predatory raids and rampages by the military and money-oriented politicians at Save Valley Conservancy, Mugabe reportedly said safari areas would now be controlled by the national parks, which in turn will be owned by local communities and government through the department of National Parks and Wildlife, that will run them.
Sources said Mugabe opened the meeting by emphasising the invasions by a few “greedy” senior army and officials could be damaging and costly to Zau PF as it prepares for crucial elections next year.
Although the land reform programme and indigenisation might have helped Mugabe and his party to hang onto power, they have also significantly damaged their reputation as they were reduced to looting sprees and plunder.
Referring to the land redistribution which was charactersied by racial undercurrents and greed, the late Zanu PF maverick Edison Zvobgo said his party had reduced a “glorious revolution” into an “agrarian racist enterprise”.
“President Mugabe opened the politburo meeting with the Save Valley Conservancy issue. After dealing with the issue, he lambasted senior party and army generals recently given concessions in the conservancy, saying these people were driven by pure greed and nothing else. He said they are just interested in killing wildlife and selling the meat,” a senior politburo member said.
“Mugabe asked why they were grabbing more land when they were given farms during the land reform programme. He accused them of wanting to take more and more without considering the communities in the valley.”
Another official said: “The Save issue was dividing and destroying the party ahead of elections. This, the president said, gives an impression that Zanu PF is full of greedy people who just want to grab everything.”
Cabinet ministers have fighting over the issue. Tourism minister Walter Mzembi and his Environment counterpart Francis Nhema are engaged in an ugly public spat over the matter. The Zanu PF Masvingo provincial executive has labelled Mzembi a “sell-out”.
Mzembi, pushing for the reversal of the take-overs, has been arguing the parcelling out of conservancies was threatening the successful hosting of next year’s United Nations World Tourism Organisation General Assembly in Victoria Falls.
Some of the Zanu PF and military elites who have benefitted from the seizures include lieutenant-colonel David Moyo, major-general Gibson Mashingaidze, retired-colonel Claudius Makova, assistant commissioner Connel Dube, Masvingo provincial intelligence officer Chibaya, major-general Engelbert Rugeje, Brigadier-General Livingstone Chineka, Higher Education Minister Stan Mudenge, politburo member Nelson Mawema, Health deputy minister Douglas Mombeshora, Masvingo Governor Titus Maluleke, Zanu PF central committee member Enock Porusingazi, Shuvai Mahofa, and MPs Ailess Baloyi, Abraham Sithole, Samson Mukanduri, Noel Mandebvu and Ronald Ndava.
Others include former Tourism secretary Sylvester Maunganidze, Masvingo provincial administrator Felix Chikovo, late Vice-President Simon Muzenda’s son Tongai, Elliot Takawira believed to be related to national hero Leopold Takawira, and war veterans’ leader Joseph Chinotimba.
Chiredzi South MP Baloyi claimed he had been elected new Save Valley Conservancy chairperson, replacing former Zanu PF Manicaland provincial chairperson Basil Nyabadza, who however argues he remains chair until the politburo ruled on the matter.
Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo said yesterday the politburo has set up a committee which includes Tourism and Natural Resources minister Francis Nhema, Mzembi, Lands minister Herbert Murerwa and Local Government minister Ignatius Chombo to look into the feasibility of turning the conservancies into national parks and also to propose models that ensure communities also benefit.
“Conservancies have created a lot of problems. There may be need to do away with conservancies and create national parks,” Gumbo said. “We want to find a way forward that ends the wrangle that is taking place and also bring harmony in the community. Everyone was supportive of the proposal to turn the conservancies into national parks.”
Other senior party officials set to lose their conservancies are Mines minister Obert Mpofu, Bulawayo governor Cain Mathema, Matabeleland North governor Thokozile Mathuthu and Vice-President John Nkomo.
While speakers took turns to slate beneficiaries of the conservancy confiscations, politburo sources said former Masvingo governor Josiah Hungwe, one of the beneficiaries, said it was a “win-win” situation because the whites were also set to lose their land.
The politburo decision came after chiefs in Chiredzi issued a statement recently accusing the party leadership of grabbing all opportunities presented by the party’s indigenisation programme.
“The same people now being allocated our conservancies are multiple beneficiaries of sugarcane plots, as well as ranches and farms. The option that the governor and his clique have adopted, under which they partner sitting tenants, has caused a lot of destruction to wildlife. For example, Mrs Shuvai Mahofa and company are harvesting game meat for sale without hunting permits,” the chiefs said.
“Three months ago Souter Zvinavashe, a protégée of the governor was arrested, but released without charge after he was caught with tonnes of game meat he was selling to the public in Mukwasine, Gutu, Bikita and Mutare.”
The Save Valley Conservancy was founded in 1991 and has drawn support from the World Wildlife Fund and investors from Europe and the United States who are protected under bilateral investment protection agreements.
If the president were to mantain this momentum going into the election then there is absolutely no reason why ZANU shouldnt run away with the poll. If anything has hurt ZANU more than anything anyone can think of it is this idea that the president did not care anymore about how some of these fellows were hell bent on detroying the party, government and everything that he tried to build at independence, with wanton wholescale corruption…I pray the president really does thorough house (spring?) cleaning and return the ZANU party back to its old glory days! This is the only way and avenue left open, back into people’s hearts… The current surveys reported in the press though not faultless say there is still room for reigniting the pac (covenant?)t made with the people in 1980..It is really up to him.
If only…..but was just a dream.
100% correct Chris. I want a Mugabe who is in control than a confused womeniser.
Chris, Zanu is dead, the time Tekere said the country has gone to the dogs, that was the time.All these problems our country is suffering is because of abuse of power nothing else.You have just said because of coming elections thats why he is responding in such a way, the question comes then, when were these issues raised.And believe you me, watch the solving of the issue??
This band wagon are upto no good and they don’t care what the Nation thinks, its only that they are worried by the election time, so they go back and keep on with the same game.
These nutters don’t have a word called accountability in their vocabulary or their spirit.
I feel sorry for people like you , who still have faith in such a gang.
Vanhu ve zanu vakaoma zvavo.Zvino ndiyo empowerement here iyoyi yanogaro titaurira.Mese imi makatora mapurazi amakaparadza ikozvino moda kuparadza maconservancies futi.On the recorsd is major-general Engelbert Rugeje.Wakapamba purazi kuKaroi raiva nemurungu airima nyama and supplying the whole area kusvika kuKariba and into Zambia.Papurazi apa paiva nestate of the art arbitor cold rooms and everything.General ava vakatora purazi irori vakariparadza vakagurunura generator hombe raiva ipapo vakanoisa kumba kwavo kuborrowdale.Papurazi up pairimwa fodya asi ikozvino pava kupisa tsitsi.Vashandi vepaurazi ipapa vava kutambura zvinopisa tsitsi.There is no production going on there.State of the art arbitor iya yava kitwa rent kune vanhu vemabutchery vanouraya mombe.Mafashanu emombe aiva ipapa papurazi hapachina.
Zvino munhu mumwe iyeyu akaratida huwori hwakakomba kuda opihwazve rimwe purazi kuti aparadzazve nekuzviita self enrich nepaisina kushanda.Zanu kwete ndaramba
No Chris, the damage has been done and continious to be done. But the electorate are not looking at that, they know that whoever they vote for will do the same thing. In the rural areas, the person weilding a stick will tell them who to vote for. So you see it is not a clean party that wins elections it is those who control the masses and and have means to divert the truck carrying the balot boxes to add a few correct ones…eh?
Mbava mbava. These people can never win a free and fair election. They’ve been on a looting spree since 1980 which should halted in its tracks. Most of these crooks have more than one farm where they have cut all the trees and hunted down all wildlife,now they want to decimate the little that is left. Gushungo anongowawata and nothing happens.
thanks baba Chatunga for reign in these thieves
Mr President, this is the right and correct thing to do. Remove all these greedy people who are using the revolution to enrich themselves at the expense of the local communities.You almost lost my vote, and removing these people, you have kept my vote. Mr President,this is the time to redeem yourself by doing the right thing.
Kana kuchine vanhu vachiri kufunga nezve Zanu pf uku ndiko kunonzi kurashika pachindau
Things Zanu PF and CIO are accused of!!!From a collapsed economy to influencing the social lives of opponents,worst Party and intelligence agency world over really.
the only chance 4 these zanu pf thieves 2 get away with the poll is like bitting a rock & sipping acid.we’re fed up of mugabe’s brag when the elections are about the corner-no tolerance 2 monkey business anymore!!! Hands off our national cake u uncoothy and pathetic bandits
ndosaka vanhu vakarmba zanu nguva yema election looting of farms , pilage of parastal,
more than one each , povo haina chainacho ana mujiba nana chimbwido vakakanganwika, zvose zvava zvavo mp , ministers, top army officers ,hanzi tisu takarwa hondo kukunda mese ndo zvido zve nhu zvari kuita pamberi nehondo
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