COMMENT - There has to be an agency that stands between anyone walking up to a chief and walking away with the right to 'buy' 20,000 hectares. There is too much poverty to 'leave it to the market'. That's a recipe for highway robbery.
Government denies an individual investor 20, 000 hectares given to him by a local Chief
TIME PUBLISHED - Sunday, February 19, 2012, 1:30 pm
Government says it will only give 1,000 hectares of land to Jan Wessy Jacob Boatha, an investor who was allegedly given 20,000 hectares of land by Chief Kaindu of Mumbwa district in Central province for the purpose of game ranching. And Chief Kaindu has denied receiving K50 Million down payment from the K500 Million cost of the land that extends across Kafue river allegedly sold to Mr Boatha.
Central Province Permanent Secretary Edwin ZUMBUNU told ZANIS in Kabwe yesterday that government could not give a huge chunk of land amounting to 20,000 hectares to one person because this was too much.
Mr Zumbunu said out of the 20,00 hectares the investor required, only 1,000 hectares will be offered to him while 19, 000 hectares will be given back to the people in the area so that they could continue with their life set up.
He further explained that after consultations and verifications, part of the land would be given back to the Zambia Wildlife Authority (ZAWA) to also continue managing wild life.
Mr Zumbunu pointed out that 1, 000ha would be big enough for Mr Boatha to keep wild animals and allow the other part be used by the local people for cultivation and other activities.
And Chief Kaindu said it was not true that he was given K50 Million by Mr Boatha as down payment from the alleged K500 Million cost of the 20,000ha of land.
Chief Kaindu told ZANIS that the matter was exaggerated by a Ward Councilor in his chiefdom who allegedly instigated villagers to protest and petition government through the then Mumbwa District Commissioner Lemmy Chibuye.
Chief Kaindu who was accompanied by Mumbwa District Commissioner Sunday Shamabanse, accused the named Ward Councilor of trying to cause confusion by making unsubstantiated allegations.
He said Mr Boatha was in fact just interested in working with the Mpusu community by providing funds for developmental community based projects which would ease people lives in the chiefdom.
“Boatha want to assist with funds for development in my area which he would deposit in a development account. This money would not be given to me, I will not even see this money because it will go straight into an account to which I will be a signatory,’ Explained Chief Kaindu.
But in November last year, Mpusu villagers complained to government that Chief Kaindu was allegedly selling land without consulting his subjects.
The villagers were concerned because the size of the land in question which they said extended across Kafue river and included part of the game management area.
ZANIS
Labels: CHIEF KAINDU, FDI, LAND
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Chief Kaindu unhappy with govt giving land to investors
By Agness Changala
Sun 10 Jan. 2010, 04:00 CAT
CHIEF Kaindu of Mumbwa district has said he is very upset with the government in the way it is giving out land to investors in his chiefdom. In a statement, chief Kaindu said that customary land in his chiefdom was now in private hands because he was not consulted.
“I am very upset and dumbfounded on the way the Ministry of Lands is dispersing land in my chiefdom and all customary land in private owners including D-block,” he said.
Chief Kaindu also appealed to the government to
send surveyors to his chiefdom to make a clear demarcation between state and customary land.
He said that his subjects had nowhere to stay because land had been taken away from them by investors who claimed to have bought the land from the government.
Chief Kaindu said that the poor should be protected instead of being displaced from the land they had owned for a long time.
He also called on the government to resolve the matter amicably because his poor subjects needed protection and not victimisation.
And chief Kaindu has urged the government through the Ministry of Mines to issue licences to those involved in mining.
“I have noted with sadness that there’s a lot of illegal mining taking place in my chiefdom and these people are getting wealthy minus paying back to the community,” he said.
Chief Kaindu said the issue of illegal mining should also be resolved as soon as possible, adding that such problems coupled with land wrangles caused disputes among generations.
Labels: CHIEF KAINDU, CHIEFS, CORRUPTION, LAND RIGHTS, MINISTRY OF LANDS
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Kaindu royal body resolves to dethrone chief
Written by Allan Mulenga
Monday, December 15, 2008 5:01:42 AM
KAINDU Royal Establishment committee member Greenwell Kabinda has disclosed that the High Court has quashed an injunction filed by chief Kaindu restraining the establishment from dethroning him.
In an interview on Saturday, Kabinda said according to the consent order obtained from the High Court, the establishment was now at liberty to dethrone Leonard Kakoma, who is the current chief Kaindu.
“We had a meeting on Saturday with the people in the area, updating them about the progress we have made in dethroning Kakoma. It was agreed that we go ahead and remove him from the chiefdomship,” he said.
Kabinda said the establishment was just waiting for a presidential endorsement to finally replace Kakoma with Cevers Kaindu as the next chief Kaindu.
Recently, chief Kaindu of the Kaonde people in Mumbwa said it was impossible for the Kaindu Royal Establishment to dethrone him.
Earlier, the Kaindu royal family resolved to remove Kakoma as chief Kaindu following allegations of excessive beer drinking, misconduct and selling too much land.
But chief Kaindu said the allegations were acts of mere jealousy.
On allegations that he was an excessive drinker, chief Kaindu said: “What do I do when I drink too much? Do I insult? Nobody does not drink where I come from. It’s just that they don’t have money.”
Chief Kaindu denied allegations that he gives away pieces of land to investors after being offered beer.
He said he did not have the right to give out land and that he only gave consent.
Labels: CHIEF KAINDU, CHIEFS, GREENWELL KABINDA, KAINDU ROYAL ESTABLISHMENT, LEONARD KAKOMA
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