Nick Mangwana, ZANU PF MP, Business Mogul Evict Villagers From Chegutu Farms - Report
The secretary for Information, Nick Mangwana, is being accused of displacing villagers at two farms in Chegutu under controversial circumstances.
Mangwana allegedly teamed up with ZANU PF Mhondoro-Mubaira legislator Freddy Kapuya to displace the villagers in Thorndyke and Hopewell farms in Chegutu East.
Freddy Kapuya, who is also a former Redcliff mayor, was allegedly given 350 hectares of land while Mangwana got 100 hectares, affected villagers told The Standard.
It is alleged that hundreds of villagers occupying part of Thorndyke and Hopewell farms have been served with eviction orders and directed to stop developments pending eviction.
Sources said that a Chinese mining company, Global Platinum Resources, is also set to occupy part of the farms for platinum mining and recently visited the area for some assessments.
The Zimbabwe Land and Agrarian Network (ZLAN), a membership-based local network of farmers and researchers, has since written a letter to the government seeking clarification.
ZLAN also wrote a letter to the Chegutu Rural District Council requesting an official position on reports that Global Platinum Resources has interests in the area.
Some of the villagers are said to have occupied the land at the height of land invasions in the early 2000s.
One of the victims, a 66-year-old woman, is said to have suffered a stroke and is bedridden after she was given only 48 hours to leave.
