President
Emmerson
Mnangagwa,
seeking
to
restore
ties
with
western
governments
who
were
critical
of
the
land
seizures,
has
committed
to
pay
US$3,5
billion
to
just
over
4,000
farmers
but
only
for
improvements
to
the
land,
and
not
the
land
itself.
The
scheme
first
announced
in
2020
has
made
little
progress.
To
date,
the
Zimbabwe
government
has
paid
just
US$3
million
for
378
farms.
Now
five
veterans
of
the
1970s
bush
war
leading
to
Zimbabwe’s
independence
in
1980
are
challenging
the
compensation
agreement
which
they
argue
cannot
be
implemented
without
a
new
law
of
parliament.
Represented
by
rights
lawyer
and
former
finance
minister
Tendai
Biti,
the
ex-combatants
are
also
questioning
the
secrecy
around
the
deal
and
the
methodology
of
calculating
what
is
due
to
each
farmer.
Ultimately,
they
are
asking
the
High
Court
to
declare
the
compensation
agreement
unconstitutional
and
void.
Should
they
win
in
court,
the
entire
scheme
–
whose
delayed
implementation
has
led
to
much
consternation
among
the
ageing
farmers
–
could
be
in
jeopardy.
In
an
affidavit
accompanying
the
court
application,
war
veteran
Joseph
‘Ginger’
Chinguwa
says
it
has
been
stated
by
the
finance
minister
Mthuli
Ncube
in
particular
that
there
exists
a
Global
Compensation
Agreement
between
the
government
and
the
farmers
for
the
payment
of
US$3,5
billion.
Said
Chinguwa:
“The
challenge
we
have
as
war
veterans
is
that
the
government
has
not
disclosed
how
it
assessed
and
valued
the
US$3,5
billion…
There
must
be
a
disclosure
of
the
improvements
that
were
being
valued.
Is
it
dams?
Is
it
buildings?
Is
it
anything
permanently
affixed
to
the
land?”
The
war
veterans
are
arguing
that
“in
our
respectful
view,
anything
permanently
affixed
to
the
land
is
part
of
the
land…
This
would
include,
for
instance,
dams,
buildings,
fruit,
coffee
or
tea
plantations.”
If
the
compensation
is
for
movable
assets
such
as
fences,
center
pivots,
tractors
or
irrigation
pipes,
these
must
be
subjected
to
depreciation
calculations,
they
told
the
High
Court.
“There
is
no
law
in
Zimbabwe
that
offers
a
method
of
assessment
and
valuation
of
improvements.,”
the
war
veterans
said.
In
the
absence
of
such
a
law,
they
argue
that
an
act
of
parliament
was
required
to
give
effect
to
section
295(3)
of
the
constitution
which
provides
that
individuals
whose
agricultural
land
was
acquired
by
the
state
are
entitled
to
compensation
by
the
state
“only
for
improvements
that
were
on
the
land
when
it
was
acquired.”
Argues
Chinguwa
on
behalf
of
the
war
veterans:
“It
follows
in
our
view
that
the
government
needed
to
present
before
parliament
a
comprehensive
Act
of
Parliament
that
defined
the
methodology
of
calculating
compensation,
the
land
and
improvements
to
be
compensated
and
the
identities
of
the
beneficiaries.
“None
of
this
was
done.
To
this
day
the
Global
Compensation
Agreement
is
a
closely
kept
secret.
In
a
country
governed
by
the
rule
of
law
and
constitutionalism,
this
is
clearly
unconstitutional.
“We
are
not
concerned
with
the
availability
of
the
Global
Compensation
Agreement
at
this
stage.
Our
argument
is
simply
that
by
agreeing
to
a
compensation
of
US$3,5
billion
in
the
absence
of
an
Act
of
Parliament
envisaged
in
section
295(4),
the
government
acted
outside
the
constitution
of
Zimbabwe.
“The
Global
Compensation
Agreement
is
therefore
ultra
vires
the
provisions
of
section
295(4)
of
the
constitution
of
Zimbabwe.
It
must
be
set
aside…”
The
decision
to
compensate
white
farmers
has
divided
Zanu
PF.
Mnangagwa’s
eagerness
to
make
peace
with
the
farmers
in
the
hope
of
mending
relations
with
western
countries
reportedly
does
not
enjoy
the
support
of
his
deputy
Constantino
Chiwenga,
who
believes
the
money
would
be
better
spent
on
public
infrastructure
and
social
programmes.
The
war
veterans’
court
application
carries
similar
sentiments.
“Land
was
at
the
epicentre
of
our
struggle
for
independence.
As
war
veterans,
we
are
particularly
concerned
that
US$3,5
billion
is
being
paid
to
farmers
when
we
war
veterans
are
dying
and
languishing
in
deep
poverty
across
the
length
and
breadth
of
the
country
and
our
hospitals
are
without
medicines
and
schools
without
textbooks,”
they
said.
Chinguwa
is
joined
in
the
application
by
Godfrey
‘Zvabhendazvabhenda’
Gurira,
Joseph
‘Hitler
Bazooka’
Chinyangare,
Reuben
Zulu
and
Digmore
Ndiya.
The
matter
is
yet
to
be
set
down
for
hearing.