Harare City Council: Orders Illegal Land Demolitions Amid Fraud

• Harare City Council is moving to demolish over 100 illegal settlements while regularizing thousands of others.
• Land barons are accused of using forged documents and new tactics like weekend invasions to seize properties.
• Areas such as Kuwadzana Paddocks, Budiriro, and Greendale are significantly affected by illegal constructions, including on wetlands and school sites.
• The Council's regularisation program has processed 93 out of 101 visited settlements since July 2023.
• No regularisation will occur for invasions on wetlands, schools, recreational areas, low-density areas, or any new invasions after September 24, 2023.

The Council has drawn a clear line, unequivocally stating that no regularisation will be granted for invasions on wetlands, school sites, recreational areas, or low-density properties, nor for any new encroachments occurring after September 24, 2023.

Harare City Council is intensifying its efforts against widespread illegal land settlements, accusing unscrupulous land barons of employing forged documents and covert night-time invasions to seize properties. A new and concerning tactic involves invaders occupying land over weekends and rapidly moving people onto the sites, a strategy designed to complicate and frustrate subsequent demolition attempts by authorities. These illicit activities are particularly prevalent in medium and low-density areas across the city.

The Council's report highlights that many of these fraudulent claims are supported by documents featuring scanned and forged signatures, indicating a sophisticated level of deception. All identified instances of such illegal land grabs have been formally reported to the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) for investigation and action. The scale of the problem is significant, with several key areas severely impacted by these unauthorized constructions.

Among the most affected locations is Kuwadzana Paddocks, where 21 housing cooperatives are currently facing demolition orders issued by the courts. Other critical hotspots include Budiriro, Greendale, Crowborough, Belvedere, and Mbare. In Budiriro, specific cooperatives such as Ebenezer, Chiedza Chedu, and Totonga have erected structures on sensitive wetlands and designated school sites, exacerbating environmental and public service concerns. Greendale has seen construction on 45 stands for the past eight years without proper authorization, while in Crowborough, 291 stands originally allocated to the Debora and Limpopo cooperatives are now illegally occupied.

In response to the pervasive issue of illegal land occupation, Harare City Council has adopted a two-pronged strategy: the demolition of over 100 unauthorized settlements alongside a comprehensive regularisation programme for thousands of other stands. This initiative aims to restore order within the city's burgeoning housing sector, which has been plagued by informal and unlawful developments.

Since its inception in July 2023, the Regularisation Task Force has actively engaged with the problem, visiting 101 settlements encompassing a total of 22,255 stands. Through these efforts, 93 settlements have successfully undergone the regularisation process. This crucial step enables the Council to begin billing residents for rates and essential services, integrating these previously informal areas into the city's formal administrative and financial frameworks.

However, the Council has established stringent criteria for what will not qualify for regularisation, drawing a clear line against certain types of invasions. No regularisation will be granted for invasions on wetlands, school sites, recreational areas, or low-density properties. Furthermore, any new encroachments occurring after September 24, 2023, are explicitly excluded from the regularisation programme. The Council also issued a stern warning against the misuse of housing cooperatives as a front for illegal land allocations, particularly in affluent suburbs, emphasizing that such deceptive practices in low-density areas will not be tolerated or regularized.

The widespread nature of these illegal land grabs carries significant implications for Harare's urban planning and environmental integrity. The encroachment on vital public spaces like school sites and environmentally sensitive areas such as wetlands poses long-term challenges for sustainable development and public welfare. The Council's firm stance against regularizing such invasions underscores its commitment to protecting these critical resources.

The ongoing efforts highlight a broader struggle against corruption and informal land markets, where housing cooperatives are sometimes exploited to facilitate unlawful land acquisition. The Council's explicit warning against using these cooperatives as a disguise for land baron activities in low-density areas signals a heightened awareness and determination to combat such fraud. This situation necessitates rigorous due diligence for property transactions in Harare, especially concerning housing cooperatives, to mitigate risks of demolition, loss of investment, and potential legal disputes.

As the Council moves forward with its enforcement actions, several demolition orders are currently pending execution by the Sheriff. This indicates a decisive phase in the city's attempt to reclaim illegally occupied land and enforce urban planning regulations, ensuring that future development adheres to established legal frameworks and protects communal and environmental assets.

Lawyers and compliance officers should advise clients on the increased enforcement actions by Harare City Council against illegal land settlements, particularly those involving forged documents or located in restricted areas like wetlands. This necessitates rigorous due diligence for property transactions in Harare, especially concerning housing cooperatives, to mitigate risks of demolition, loss of investment, and potential legal disputes arising from non-compliance with the Council's regularisation framework.

Source: Original reporting via New Zimbabwe