Families evicted in land grab

Families evicted in Centenary Farm land grab

Nehanda Radio By Nomalanga Moyo

August 7 2014

Generations of workers at Centenary Farm in Figtree are now homeless after top ZANU PF official Ray Ndhlukula evicted them and installed himself as the new owner on Tuesday.

The Centenary Farm workers join the many thousands of displaced families in Zimbabwe

The farm belongs to David Conolly who has been trying since June to fend off the forcible takeover by Ndhlukula, a deputy chief secretary in the President’s Office.

The farm invasion is in contempt of a Bulawayo High Court order barring Ndhlukula from occupying the property, located in the Matebeleland South province.

Ndhlukula began moving implements on to the farm Friday, ordering Conolly to leave while also boasting about his status in President Mugabe’s administration.

Ndhlukula’s distinguished position in Mugabe’s government reportedly dates back to the time of the Gukurahundi massacres when he was a district administrator in the province. Reports also indicate that he already owns another farm, registered in his son’s name.

In an interview with SW Radio Africa, Conolly said a group of about 40 people arrived at the farm on Tuesday and started evicting his workers from their quarters.

“I immediately approached Figtree police to try and get them to stop the evictions in view of the order. I spent two hours there but I got no help from the police who said they were waiting for instructions from above on how to proceed.

“Sadly by 6pm Tuesday all my workers had been thrown out of their homes which were then occupied by Ndhlukula’s workers,” Conolly said.

Conolly said he was saddened that Ndhlukula’s actions would also cost him people he had come to regard as family and friends.

“I had living on the farm 23 adults who had about 50 dependents and amongst them is one guy who was born on the farm in 1946 whose father and grandfather worked and lived with my family before me.

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