Umguza RDC halts land development
UMGUZA Rural District Council (RDC) has issued an order prohibiting a local land developer from doing any work on a piece of land in Ntabazinduna Township.
The order, written by chief executive officer, Mr Collen Moyo, to the developer Mr Nicholas Masuku of N and S Properties, stated that all the work being done by the developer must be stopped immediately while material on site must also be removed.
“Whereas Umguza Rural District Council did on the 16th of March 2017 serve upon you Nicholas Masuku of N and S Properties and any other person developing on a portion of land in Ntabazinduna Township on BC848 layout, the enforcement order and whereas Umguza RDC considers it necessary to prohibit the continuation of the operation or use herein specified in terms of section 34 of the Regional Town and Country Planning Act (chapter 29:12) of 1996,” read part of the order seen by Sunday News.
The order also read that in terms of the said Section 34, the developer was ordered with effect from 3 May 2017 which is the date from which the order took effect to discontinue all operations on any use of the land concerned. The developer must also discontinue all illegal development, construction works and any other forms of developments on the land with immediate effect and other unauthorised use of the land and remove all the materials on site.
The piece of land in question is that which was awarded to more than 200 civil servants from the Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services (ZPCS) Ntabazinduna Training Depot, police officers, teachers, nurses, other civil servants and some injiva from the area. The developer is said to have given beneficiaries a raw deal and the RDC distanced itself from the project.
Beneficiaries who spoke on condition of anonymity said they have been contributing to the scheme since 2011.
“We got these stands from as far back as 2011, we paid deposits of US$500 and we have been paying the developer US$100 each month since then, some stands cost us US$3 000. We had been told that after servicing we were free to build only if we submitted our plans for approval,” said one beneficiary.
The beneficiaries, seeing that they were not getting any joy from the developer, wrote to the RDC seeking assistance and advice as whether to submit house plans and were shocked when they were told that the company responsible for developing does not exist.
Sunday News is in possession of letters from the beneficiaries to Umguza RDC and another from the RDC to the beneficiaries dated 30 September 2016 which denied any knowledge of the project.
“First of all, we are not aware of the existence of the Ntabazinduna Housing Committee; secondly we are not aware that there are N and S Properties stands in Ntabazinduna. Thirdly you are advised to surrender your plans to those that sold you the stands so that they assist you with all your logistical requirements,” read a letter from the Engineer Mrs Queen Masocha from the RDC.
When Sunday News contacted the director of N and S Properties last year he refuted the allegations levelled against him and said he was approaching the courts to try and seek recourse over the matter. He claimed that the RDC was falsifying information over the project.
The beneficiaries of the housing facility said ever since the establishment of the ZRP and ZPCS depots in 2004 and 2000 respectively, more than 80 percent of Government employees at these two institutions including teachers, soldiers and other members assisting with developmental initiatives in the area have been residing in Bulawayo which is about 40 kilometers away which makes it costly in terms of travelling expenses.