GOVERNMENT says an audit of land will culminate in repossession of idle land, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, Christable Ngimbu has said.
Ms Ngimbu said in an interview yesterday that land that has been idle for many years has become the conduit for illegal land allocation in some parts of the country.
“All those that own vast but idle land should start developing it, or they risk losing it to the Government,” she said.
Ms Ngimbu said Government will take stock of every idle land after which it will embark on the repossession of such tracts of land.
The minister was speaking in reaction to the illegal land allocation at Galunia Farms in Mutumbi area in Lusaka, where some people have been sharing idle land.
However, Ms Ngimbu warned that Government will not let perpetrators of illegal land allocation go scot-free.
“We are not going to leave any stone unturned till the culprits are brought to book. The wrath of the law will visit individuals that are involved in illegal land allocation,” she said.
The minister has since called on the local authorities to sensitise people on the importance of following the right procedure in land acquisition.
“Councils should also keep an eye on illegal land allocation because that affects town planning,” she said.
Ms Ngimbu also warned of stern action against officials in her ministry and councils who are involved in illegal land allocation.
And 14 out of the 24 people who were arrested for illegally allocating land belonging to Galunia farms in Chamba valley have been charged with criminal trespass.
The 14 suspects are expected to appear in court today.
Lusaka Province police commanding officer, Charity Katanga has confirmed the charging of the 14 suspects.
“We initially picked up 24 suspects for illegally allocating land belonging to Galunia farms. But after screening them, we have detained 14 suspects who have been formerly charged with criminal trespass. The others suspects have been released,’’ she said in an interview in Lusaka yesterday.
Mrs Katanga said police are still monitoring the situation at Galunia farms.
An on-the-spot check found vigilant police officers clad in riot gear manning the farm.
On Saturday police curtailed the illegal allocation of land at the farm where some people had started clearing the site for construction of houses.
During the operation, police confiscated wheelbarrows, axes and bull dozers from land developers.
The site was, however, all quiet yesterday.
Please also reposes illegally acquired land in Ibex Hill (Kalale area), Lusaka West and Silver Rest. Some of the land was illegally acquired and invaded by suspected MMD cadres and was land already on title. There are court orders to reposes the land but so far has not been enforced. The Kalale land (Ibex Hill) was, in fact, demolished under President L P Mwanawasa and returned to rightful owners because of a court order, only to be re-invaded again the same day President R B Banda was sworn in to replace late Mwanawasa. Please restore these illegally acquired plots and enforce the court order as part of the rule of law in Zambia!
Don’t change the land reforms to suit foreigners to buy. Its hard to get it back. Look at South Africa
There a lot of corrupt individuals in some offices , who are wrongly placed who keep on frustrating the development of our nation. We in diaspora have great plans to help our land develop ; but we are being denied the opportunity to participate . for example I applied for a plot to build some infrastructure 7years ago, up to today no thing has moved. I just don’t know whom to approach on this issue.
Madam Minister, please restore some sanity in Land administration and management at your ministry, and by extension to the Local Councils (MLGH) who are your agents. Follow the Land Policy (if it is in place) or Land Reforms to effectively deal with the land issue in Zambia.
The moment you start giving ‘amnesties’ to people that have not developed VAST but IDLE land renders you open to manipulation and corruption. Use the existing laws to repossess the land in question and redistribute.
‘Illegal land allocations’ are a direct inability by your Ministry to act on ‘devopers’ who have kept vast tracts of land for ages without developing it.
It is every citizen’s right to own land in Zambia.
*I must add that most of this VAST and IDLE land is owned by foreigners!
Do not! Instead, enable people to use the land they have or introduce a fair buy out scheme.
Why can’t a Zambian keep three hectares of land when foreign investors have hundreds and hundreds of idle land?
LT, please don’t misquote the Minister.
She didn’t say “reposes”, she said “repossess”
Reposes, or repossess, does not make any difference. This is Z generation english and better learn fast to live with it. Minister shall give a maximum of 6 months to develop every piece of land allotted to anybody or else just repossess it and give it to next in the queue on a maximum of 1 years development time. Charge in every town, at least K10,000 per 100 square meters of land as development fee and for farming land charge K2,000 per hectare and this shall be annual charge to ensure farming becomes a serious business or give way to other serious farmers. Farming land rates shall apply to any piece of land above 10 hectares. Up to 10 hectares the charge shall be very nominal.
They should approve the plans quickly otherwise which plans can people use when they are not approved?
Some people just wish there was no death on this earth. I mean, what is a lot of land for when you know that you are just brief on this planet. Some of these leaders you see have really failed us because their reasonng capacities are so low such that they do not see human life in its proper pespective. BIRTH-LIFE-DEATH the cycle show like this. Of course there are processes in between, but those do not usually matter because they are supposed to make people more considerate to others to leave the world better than they found it for the sake of the generations to come. It even makes me wonder even for those people who try inherite other people’s properties, they are such short sighted not to see that it wont be long they will also hit the 6 feet under-ground. Read the Bible you people of…
@Rasco, you don’t even need to read the Bible for that reasoning you have advanced; it is just common sense. But what you highlight is that we definitely do get a lot of sensible stuff from the scriptures which would guide rational behavior!