KAROI – Spring Farm, a massive property in Karoi — has attracted interest from youths in ZANU-PF who have ratcheted up pressure on the party’s leadership to have it repossessed in order to punish Temba Mliswa, its current owner, for standing up to the party.
The property includes a service station, which is being leased out to Comoil — a company owned by the party’s political commissar, Saviour Kasukuwere.
Also on the property, is a restaurant, which, before it was rundown, was quite popular with tourists travelling to and from the resort town of Kariba as well as travellers destined to and from Zimbabwe’s western border with Zambia.
Mliswa rose rapidly within ZANU-PF, becoming arguably the youngest provincial chairman in 2012.
However, his political stock declined rapidly, beginning September 2014, when Mliswa became the first victim of the votes of no confidence passed in the majority of the party’s provincial chairmen for hobnobbing with Joice Mujuru, then President Robert Mugabe’s second in command.
In February, he was to be expelled from the party, and later recalled from Parliament along with his uncle, Didymus Mutasa, the party’s former secretary for administration.
Peeved by his calamitous fall, Mliswa attempted in vain to save his Hurungwe West seat by contesting his recall in the Constitutional Court.
And when the court application fell through, he filed his nomination papers to stand as an independent candidate.
The by-election has been set for June 10.
Since then, there have been spirited attempts to force Mliswa to relocate from Mashonaland West on grounds that he does not originate from the region.
Mliswa hails from Shurugwi, in the Midlands, and grew up in Waterfalls, Harare.
He moved his base to Mashonaland West after he was allocated Spring Farm during the controversial land reform.
Leading attempts to push Mliswa off the farm are ZANU-PF youths and traditional leaders who form the bulwark of the party’s agent provocateurs.
Vengai Musengi, ZANU-PF’s Mashonaland West youth chairperson, confirmed that youths in the province were threatening to descend on Mliswa’s farm if he does not desist from his vitriolic verbal attacks on the party.
“We know that Mliswa is saying a lot of stuff and he should stop. I have heard reports that the youths want to take action against him and move to his farm. This is a warning to him to shut up,” said Musengi.
Traditional leaders in Hurungwe district have held a meeting with the district administrator, Tsana Chirau, with reports in the State media claiming the chiefs threatened to leave their thrones if Mliswa was not removed from Hurungwe.
Chief Chanetsa who sits in the provincial lands committee was quoted saying they did not issue Mliswa with an offer letter for his Spring Farm but were surprised when he came with one.
Investigations by the Financial Gazette indicate that the matter is still to reach the provincial lands committee, which will make recommendations to the Provincial Affairs Minister for the area, Faber Chidarikire, for onward transmission to the Minister of Lands, Douglas Mombeshora.
Be that as it may, officials from the Lands Ministry are also trying to establish circumstances surrounding Mliswa’s acquisition of the farm amid claims that the former fitness trainer does not have a valid offer letter.
Lovemore Vambe, the provincial lands officer for Mashonaland West this week said he was not aware of any moves to remove Mliswa from Spring Farm.
Mliswa, acknowledged there are such attempts, and quickly pointed an accusing finger at Local Government Minister and ZANU-PF secretary for administration; Ignatius Chombo, for influencing traditional leaders who fall under his ministerial portfolio and party youths to descend on Spring Farm.
“Unfortunately, Minister Chombo has decided to be tribal. He starts a tribal war to coerce chiefs to say we do not want Mliswa here but I am a Zimbabwean, where do I go? I am on a farm that is for Zimbabweans,” Mliswa said.
Mliswa contends that the traditional leaders were not acting on their own but on instructions from Chombo who could not be reached for comment at the time of going to print.
“Attempts to have Spring Farm, I have always said that’s not an issue. If the government wants to take it away, there must be a good reason. I am one of the most productive farmers. Right now I am sitting on thousands of tonnes of maize, so that’s not an issue.
“I do not think we need to politicise the land issue. The (government) policy is very clear. Any Zimbabwean must benefit from it,” he said.
Mliswa is not the only former ZANU-PF official whose farm has been targeted for takeover.
ZANU-PF youths and war veterans have also attempted, without success, to invade former bigwigs Ray Kaukonde, Dumiso Dabengwa and Tracy Mutinhiri’s farms after they fell from grace with the revolutionary party. Financial Gazette
