White farmers who lost their land during Zimbabwe’s chaotic land redistribution exercise have made some changes to the government’s proposal of paying the US$3.5 billion compensation through a 10-year commercial paper.
The former farmers rejected the proposal and have made some changes to suit the age profile of the supposed beneficiaries.
Speaking to Business Times on Wednesday, Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) president Andrew Pascoe said they are currently engaging members to get their views on the Government proposal. Said Pascoe:
We made some new changes to the government’s proposed deal and currently, we are carrying out surveys with our members to see if they agree to the new proposals.
In 2020, the Government pledged to compensate the former farm owners in phases.
The first installment of US$1.75 billion was supposed to be paid in 2021 and the balance was to be paid in four equal installments of US$437.5 million per year.
The Government failed to fulfill the promise to the formers farmers and has shifted goalposts on several occasions.
Moreover, critics argue that the compensation does not go far enough to address the harm caused by the land reform programme.
More: Pindula News