The Government has refuted claims that it awarded over three million hectares of land located at the south end border of the Kafue River in Chongwe District to Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited.
Chief Government Spokesperson Dora Siliya said the land in question, which is only 335.5 hectares.
Ms. Siliya added that the land was leased out to Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited on 1st May, 1994 for a term of ninety nine (99) years for agricultural use.
She said 24 years down the line, Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited applied to Lusaka Province Panning Authority for permission to change land use from agricultural to commercial.
“In line with Section 53 of the Urban and Regional Planning Act No.3 of 2015, Lusaka Province Panning Authority placed an advertisement in the print media to inform members of the public of the intention by Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited to change land use. Nonetheless, when Lusaka Province Panning Authority placed a bill board in Chongwe District to notify members of the public in that area of Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited’s intention to change land use, they inadvertently left out a point on the figure of hectares,” explained Ms. Siliya.
She said this has caused members of the public to conclude that Government had sold over 3 million hectares of Land to Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited when the actual hectarage is just 333.5, which was leased out to Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited in 1994 for a period of 99 years.
“Government regrets the inconvenience this misinformation has caused to the people of Chongwe District and beyond. I wish to advise members of the public to clarify or verify facts at the relevant offices to have a correct position on the issue. Members of the public are, further, advised that Government has never and will not interfere with land administration in the country,” she said.
But a copy of the tittle deeds issued in 1994 obtained in Lusaka showed that the amount of land issued to Dingles Kafue River Lodge is 335.5470 and not 335.5 hectares as claimed by Ms. Siliya.
The same 335.5470 hectares is indicated in the advertisement placed in the Zambia Daily Mail in a public notice on the change of land use from agriculture to commercial.
The same 335.5470 hectares is also indicated on the Billboard to notify members of the public in Chongwe that Dingles Kafue River Lodge Limited’s intended to change land use.
The development has riled Chongwe residents who have revealed that the project if allowed to proceed will displace 12 villages in Chongwe which will leave thousands of people homeless.
This terrorist PF government, what will they ever admit to?
Who gave them or sold them that huge piece of land and why??? That’s question !!!!! we can’t have a drank government who seem not to know what’s happening all around them
Hon. Siliya, Even leasing 335.5 hectares to any interest for 99 years is unprecedented decision for a small country such as Zambia. How could the Chiluba Government approve such an offer? It is inimical to the very national state and the voters our political leadership take oath to serve.
In national interest let the public petition the Legislature, Judiciary and Executive to initiate a comprehensive land audit national-wide ASAP. There is too much mess done to our country over the years of useless plural political system turned adverse to the common man. straight jacket Mafias in plutocrats and oligarch have had their field day since 1991. Land and water issues are spark-plugs of turmoil world over.
Africa and we African our only let down is a fellow African with power instruments.
How can you give out land and lease for 99 years. Basically this land was just given why many poor people get displaced. Luckily the only thing common to all human kind whether good or bad is death. Take land for 99 years yet you will die, what a selfish people we have in Zambia
Well Dora please ask you Boss Edgar about NRDC, Kasaba bay airport…where these not sold to AVIC? Most of the land around 10miles in Kabangwe has also been sold to the Chinese…I will not be surprised if State House has also been sold to the Chinese….
has anyone noticed that the 20 on the title deed was canceled? is this the original title or a freshly issued one????
It was leased for “Agricultural” purposes now you want to build malls?
335.5 or 335.54 or 335.547 or 335.5475 or 335.54750 hectares!
Madam Siliya, change format to include land area size in words.
Is 335.54750 read as 3 million or 3,000,000 in Tonga?
….kwekwekwekwekwe…the upnd supporters were even getting heated up on such useless stories.
You two !mbeciles always getting wet nickers when dreaming to be analysed by Tonga?
Useless CORRUPT Minister of Lands! Jean Kapata was only made a Minister to keep her quiet about rigging the election with G12 forms for Lungu!
These criminals belong in JAIL, not in Government!
Jay Jay chikopo, you brought this up yesterday. Here are you hard facts. Good job, Dora.
Zambian Citizen – watch the video on social media…you heard what Dora has stated where the confusion was. so why am i a chikopo? Have you watched the clip? Dont just shoot away blindly
First of all, the writer of this article needs a ‘crash-course’ on approximations and decimal points.This pathetic level of journalism is annoying. It misinforms the debate.
There’s too much confusion surrounding land issue in Zambia. What we need is more transparency on past and current land deals. (i.e if anyone knows what’s going on!). It would have helped if Planning office stated the nature of commercial use. I hope the planning department checks to confirm whether or not all the land has been put to agriculture use since 1994.
You are very right. I can not believe they even started the statement with : But….. it seemed as if they were discrediting but alas they said the same thing Ms Siliya said only that Ms Siliya just said it more intelligently and refined.
Zambia has far too many f00ls. Its unfortunate a lot of ignorance is being publicly displayed. Surveying is precise and 335.5475 is 335 point 5475 hectares which is rounded to 4 decimals places. Please night school is still being offered. 335 hectares is nothing because Galum had thousands of hectares which he got in the 60s. Zambians should stop this stupidity of squatting on any piece of land they find and start making noise when the title holders want to use the land differently. This land was gotten in 1994 when generally Zambians thought it was useless and there are procedures for Land Use change which was followed. So don’t embarrass yourselves by telling the whole world that you are failing to understand decimal mathematics
I am just itching for the day when we shall start whipping foreigners, starting with ch!nese, then !ndians then the rest.
Lies have short legs indeed. This Dora and the PF is a cancer that is spreading at a rate faster than the speed of light. Let us open our eyes people before the whole country is auctioned to the highest bidder. Why are we dealing with scandal after scandal every day instead of talking development? This country is moving backwards instead of forging ahead.The so called land policy is a scandalous document no wonder the chiefs rejected it because they have seen the machinations of these PF minions. Jail awaits for you misfits masquerading as leaders. Wolves in sheep’s skins.
research properly, dont just comment on hearsay. mwasebana ……reread thearticle and also scrutinise the docs that follow. WASEBANA BOYI…
What is your point? Debate the issues and figures. Do not just talk.
Zambians Zambians -are there no people who own more than 1000 hectares in Zambia? What is the fuss with 336hectares (I have simplified the figures for you)
The problem with dunderhead people is that they always want to put a blame even where it is not supposed to be put. Hon. Siliya has just clarified the matter…am wondering why you should continue with blame game. This deal was entered into in 1994, 6 years before PF was born..why put a blame on PF then?…
mweba propaganda yabufi, mwabepako na dignity and respect with wisdom. surely 335.54750 is a million? revise your grade 6/7 topic on DECIMALS. UBUFI KWATI chi baaala
Tatwe you just seen this without seeing the video evidence with 3 million acres on it, it is just that they have been caught doctored those documents in a hurry to convince gullible people like you who can’t read between the lines. People are being displaced for a lodge now this minister changes the whole thing to agriculture. We need to know if the buyer has any farming experience or just wants to build cheap infrastructure with no economical benefits to the people being displaced. Zambians need to wake up from their docility before every space around them is sold to these foreigners, they are being given land by our so called leaders like a piece of cakes. 335 acres for 99 years is too much what are our future children going to own, they’re going to be squatters in their own land.
Ba china, it is HECTARES and NOT ACRES! There is a serious need for people to go back to school… Problem is that the government seems to have lost credibility such that no matter what evidence and information is made available people continue to smell a rat! May be there are just too many rats…!
Area of eastern province=51,476 square km…
3million hectares=30,000 square km….
In short 58% of eastern province is what the media is saying govt sold.
Area of Lusaka province=21,896 square km
What was sold= 30,000 square km…
Mmmmm the whole Lusaka province was sold by govt maybe including part of central province..
This is what i was driving the dull jj to in yesterday’s post but the full failed to see it. How do you sell lusaka province to one individual. Problem is that our friends reads the disney stories at zwd and want to bring them here . Jj you need to grow up fast. Quit that job of ckeaning the bottom of old people and starting thinking like us.
Ba HH OVAL HEAD – Don’t be childish…you didn’t know what the difference between a hectare and a kilometer was..did I not tell you it was 30,000 Km sq and I was working with what was on the video clip.
Ati “But a copy of the tittle deeds issued in 1994 obtained in Lusaka showed that the amount of land issued to Dingles Kafue River Lodge is 335.5470 and not 335.5 hectares as claimed by Ms. Siliya”.
What did the writer mean by this sentence? I am lost here!
The writer meant that he/she failed arithmetic.
Thought I was the only one. this is simply 336 if you rounded off. So Dora didn’t say anything sinister. I think she handled this very well. She even apologised for the miscommunication. If it was the predecessor (small pin charger), there was going to be noise
If you read carefully, title deed was issued in 2015 for a period of 99 years starting from 1994.
As to Dora “openness” (no pun intended), the title deed was deliberately copied in a manner to conceal actual date of issuance.
Does Ms. Dora trying to be “economical” with the truth?
iwe please napapata 335.547 is equivalent to 335.5, not same equivalent. in short its almost the same. iye tata, awiiiii, bayama aboooo, ifwe tulibepwa
Check what “rounding” means
Those white farmers from Zimbabwe who have settled in Mkushi where did we get the land to sale them and what is the lease period?Has any local person from this area complained about displacement?
the estimate calculations given by Eraser will definitely make a sensible Zambian to dispute these allegations purported by the media who exaggerated the figures.
Surely can someone blame the PF government for the land which was sold way back in 1994, when MMD was just in it’s infancy in power?
PF government has nothing to do with the land question which happened to have been sold by MMD more than 02 decades ago.
Surely people let us be realistic in this regard, we all know that corruption is rampant in PF but for this one let us rule them out from the unprofessional way MMD conducted the transaction by leasing such a big peace of land……335.54750 hectares.
i think it’s got nothing to do with UPND you morons.the whole point is that this govt is slowly but surely selling everything we own as zambians.So what will remian for our future generations?they will be slaves in there own countries because of such decisions.335 hectares or 335 million … it’s all the same.
335.5 hectares is 3.355 square kilometres.in simple terms a rectangular piece of 3.355km by 1km.
*****. I have known some reporters to be extremely dull. Unfortunately this one must be the worst of them all. Dora you are on firm ground. The reporter must go to night school.
UPND making a fuss of it all… Don’t worry about them!! They have duty to talk… They are paid!!
and your lot have duty to pillage?
Selling such huge chunks of land is not wise at all. Within the period of 99 years those chap can do whatever they wish with the land to the extend of changing owners. This is why you have some white family owning a huge part of land in Lusaka and subdividing it for sale. We need to reduce the amount of years of leasing land in Zambia. What is the benefit of the local people (benecisi) surrounding that land that is being leased for a century? It is high time we abolished these colonial laws surrounding the land policies.
Its Indian owed not White
I thought Lukolongo was under Chieftainess Chiawa. The road is impassable. Yusuf Badat as MP defended those places well, I doubt if he could have agreed to what Dora is saying, maybe it happened under Bradford Namachila. Whatever the case, it seems Mukamambo 2 will fight her first tribal war over that land. Whatever they want to do, let them seek her consent, otherwise they won’t have it easy. There may be minerals in that area
a batch of criminals phew.
Zambia. Rant, rant and rant. You might just become the ruling power. Time to stop ranters from getting power.
Ubufi aba Tonga! I have interacted with Tongas for a long time! Ba bufi! And very crooked! Traditionally thieves, crooks! They even pretend not to see decimal points just to portray others as crooks! The bible says remove the log in your own eye, before you ask your brother to remove the speck from his eye! You may be a worse thief/crook than the one you are accusing! Period!
are DINGLES CHINESE OR INDIANS? PLEASE GIVE CHINESE CHANCE TO DEVELOP ZAMBA
Why, because parasitic arse l!cker like you cannot clean own sh!thole without Chinese “expertise”
Certificate of title looks fraudulent, it would have meant sense if year 1900 was cancelled and year 2000 was put, but the other way round, looks very suspicious