A top-ranking civil servant of President Robert Mugabe’s government was arrested after giving written reprieves to white farmers under imminent threat of having their land confiscated, state radio said on Monday.
State radio said the official has been charged with theft and vandalism of farm equipment on already commandeered farms ”running into billions of dollars”. However, the move was widely seen as political.
Simon Pazvakavambwa, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Lands, Land Reform and Resettlement, earlier this year came under attack for writing letters on behalf of several white farmers in the Karoi area, 300km north-west of Harare, confirming that attempts to give their land to government-selected black Zimbabweans had been put on hold.
The farmers had faced continuous harassment from ruling Zanu-PF party militants since Mugabe launched his ”fast-track land reform” in the wake of his February 2000 constitutional referendum defeat.
A government minister tried to disown responsibility, claiming the letters from the ministry were fakes.
Pazvakavambwa also came under fire for allegedly ”sabotaging” a scheme many farming experts considered impractical — growing a maize crop under irrigation in the Zimbabwean winter months.
Police spokesperson Oliver Mandipaka said the civil servant was arrested on Friday on allegations of stealing irrigation and other equipment that became government property under new seizure laws, forbidding evicted whites from removing their farm infrastructure.
He allegedly did not use a 200ha farm he himself received under Mugabe’s redistribution plan, but left workers unpaid and took away irrigation pipes, pumps and building material.
Mugabe began seizure of 5 000 white-owned farms when defeat appeared imminent in June 2000 parliamentary elections. His ruling party claimed victory in 62 of the 120 elected seats despite widespread allegations of intimidation and rigging, which recurred during March 2002 presidential polls.
After the farm seizures, Zimbabwe’s agricultural industry suffered a crash in production felt throughout the economy, with inflation reaching 622% and 90% of Zimbabweans living below the bread line, according to United Nations statistics.
Fresh parliamentary elections are scheduled for March. The main opposition party, the Movement for Democratic Change, at the weekend deferred a decision on whether to boycott the polls in protest at gross irregularities. — Sapa-DPA