HARARE City Council (HCC) development control unit has been commended for standing firm against land barons who invaded municipality land in Westlea medium density suburb.
Speaking on Monday at the Annual State of the Ward Address (Sowa), Councillor Denford Ngadziore urged residents to acquire land through proper channels and be wary of dubious estate agents and land barons.
“Residents should not be swindled of their hard-earned cash by these unscrupulous land barons.
“Those interested in getting council land should visit their local district offices or the Department of Housing at Remembrance Drive in Mbare for assistance,” he said.
Ngadziore also said HCC was in the process of cancelling offer letters for beneficiaries who were allocated land in the Maranatha area along Harare Drive following objections by residents of the area, including what he said were some anomalies in the land acquisition processes.
The affected beneficiaries will however be allocated stands elsewhere.
The city council also said Lenana Park property owners had not been issued with title deeds since 1990, but through intervention by HCC the 400 Lenana property were issued their deeds.
Meanwhile, police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi confirmed that they were investigating illegal land barons and 12 have been arrested.
“Police have stepped up investigations on all reported cases of fraud involving the illegal sale of land in Harare. This has seen a lot of suspects from different housing co-operatives being arrested and taken to court,” Nyathi said.
