Harare, (New Ziana) – The Harare City Council was aware, in some cases authorized, construction of homes on illegal sites which it later turned around and demolished last year, accusing the owners of occupying the land unlawfully, a commission of inquiry was told on Thursday.

Harare municipal authorities demolished several homes and other building structures in and around the city last year because they were built without its authority, and on illegally occupied land.

Most of the demolitions targeted homes in Ridgeview and Belvedere suburbs, sparking public outrage in the city, especially among the affected property owners.

But a Commission of Inquiry appointed by President Emmerson Mnangagwa to investigate the affairs of the Harare City Council, heard that the municipality was complicit in some of the cases of the illegal building structures which sprouted in the city.

Led by retired Judge Mafioso Cheda, the commission was told in interviews with top council officials that the municipality okayed the construction of some of the homes which it later demolished because they had been sited on illegal land.

In some cases, the municipality granted the authority to build through court orders which the home owners had obtained.

In view of this, the commission found the city council “as guilty as the illegal land builders” and trying to pass the buck while portraying itself as an innocent party in the saga.

Such behaviour on the part of the council allowed the illegal settlements to mushroom and grow, the commission noted.

New Ziana