The ManicaPost
Wimbainashe Zhakata Post Correspondent
Mr Lameck Bvurere is a depressed man.For the past decade, he has been looking after his macadamia orchards. He has invested heavily in them.
As it stands, the nuts are now ready for harvesting and he had been looking forward to a harvest of not less than 14 tonnes.
The nuts cost between US$3 and US$5 per kg.
However, instead of counting down to the day when he will smile all the way to the bank and enjoy the fruits of his labour, Mr Bvurere is on the verge of losing the farm and nuts, as well as all his investments on the farm.
“Apart from the 10-roomed house, I also have tractors, two water tanks and a fowl run with a capacity to carry 2 000 birds at the farm,” he told The Manica Post.
The Chipinge farmer claims that a senior Government official is trying to evict him from the Subdivision 2, Stilfontein of Umzila Farm in Chipinge.
Having decided not to go down without a fight, Mr Bvurere has since approached the courts for recourse.
The warring pair is expected to appear in court on March 16 for further hearing.
A Chipinge magistrate recently stopped Mr Bvurere’s eviction.
“I was initially offered a 150ha of Subdivision 2, Stilfontein of Umzila Farm in Chipinge. However, my 2012 offer letter indicates that I occupy 90ha of Subdivision 8, Stilfontein of Umzila Farm. I never noticed the difference,” explained the disgruntled farmer.
Provincial lands officer Mr Clifford Mukoyi confirmed this anomaly.
“Mr Bvurere was allocated land under Subdivision 8, Stilfontein of Umzila Farm. He later occupied Subdivision 2, Stilfontein of Umzila Farm,” explained Mr Mukoyi.
Mr Bvurere highlighted that there is urgent need to correct the anomaly and marry the two documents.
However, the accused official insists that he has a lease to 31ha of the land in question, while Mr Bvurere is said to own 90ha.
“The Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement is responsible for allocating land, and I was allocated 31ha of that farm last year through the correct procedures.
“I have the documents to prove that 31ha of that land belongs to me,” said the official, who claimed to be unaware of the pending March 16 court session.
However, Mr Bvurere came out guns blazing, insisting that he owns 150ha of the farm.
The macadamia farmer went on to reveal that all his farm guards were arrested last week for reasons he is not aware of.
“I have owned this farm for over 11 years now. The entire 150ha belong to me. I went through all the processes to obtain the lease to that land.”
Mutare lawyer Mr Passmore Nyakureba, who is representing Mr Bvurere, shed more light on the issue.
Mr Nyakureba confirmed that Mr Bvurere’s offer letter indicated that he would occupy Subdivision 8, Stilfontein of Umzila Farm.
“In 2018, various people approached my client claiming to have offer letters for the land and seeking to evict him. The courts interdicted the people from interfering with his operations.”
A gang of youths is said to have come to Mr Bvurere’s farm with the intention of evicting him. When he stood his ground, the gang retreated. However, they returned during the macadamia nuts picking season and all hell broke loose.
“Whenever they come, they loot my macadamia nuts and my harvest has drastically declined over the past two seasons. I was expecting about 14 tonnes of macadamia nuts this season, but it is likely to plummet down to five tonnes.”
The nuts are picked in March.
To grow macadamia nuts, a farmer collects nuts and sows them in a nursery. After they grow to 30cm in height, the seedlings are transplanted in the field at a spacing of three metres all-round.
They grow into three to four metre tall tree in five years, at which age they begin to bear fruits. They continue to do so for as many as 30 years, with the farmer harvesting the nuts during each picking season.
A macadamia tree gives a farmer around 100kg of the nuts per season and a tonne of dehusked nuts sells for between $3 000 and $5 000.
