Published: 09 July 2018

Government is concerned that some cornered land barons who abused desperate land seekers' money are lying that cooperatives were banned while trying to avoid paying back.

Addressing thousands of women at a Fishing Cooperative Apex Launch held in Kariba recently, Women Affairs, Gender and Community Development Minister Sithembiso Nyoni warned that the land barons' days were numbered.

"My ministry has observed that some management committees have abused cooperatives' funds so they lie to their members that they have been banned hoping that their criminal activities will go unnoticed. Your days are numbered. The long arm of the law will catch up on you," Minister Nyoni said. She said her ministry in collaboration with the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, formed a committee to fight corruption.

"These fraudsters are mainly in the housing sector. My ministry and our Local Government colleagues have established an inter-ministerial committee to look into matters of land fraud," she said.

Minister Nyoni said the Cooperative Societies Act was still functional.

"In order to ban cooperatives one has to first repeal this Cooperative Societies Act. I am here, the Minister responsible for cooperatives and I am here repeating again that cooperatives are not banned in Zimbabwe."

She said President Mnangagwa, who is leading the fight against corruption, set a commission of inquiry that is also actively investigating issues of illegal sale of cooperative properties.
- the herald

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