By BRIAN HATYOKA –

THE Kazungula District Council has stopped a Zambia Air Force officer, Hezron Gondwe, and his father James from developing six hectares of State land the duo allegedly obtained from Senior Chief
Sekute’s Kazala area without following laid down procedure.

Kazungula Council chairperson Elias Siamibila said the local authority had since removed the wire fence put on the land which the two obtained without applying for it through the local authority.

Mr Siamibila said it was unfortunate that a Government officer did not know the procedure of acquiring land.

He said this at Senior Chief Sekute’s palace on Tuesday in Kazungula during a meeting with Mr Gondwe, Kazungula Council officials and United Party for National Development (UPND) Katombora Member of Parliament Derrick Livune.

“Let me say that as Kazungula District council, we are not going to condone this lawlessness. We will move quicker than we began to pull down every structure that is illegal in the district,” Mr Siamibila said.

But Senior Chief Sekute denied ever giving Mr Gondwe the land in question.

He said he was also aware of Minister of Lands Harry Kalaba’s recent ban on the sale of customary land.

In December last year, Mr Kalaba directed the Commissioner of Lands and councils countrywide not to process any papers relating to the sale of customary land.

He also explained that customary land which had been illegally sold would be repossessed and that the ministry would carry out an audit on such land.

Senior Chief Sekute said he did not want to entangle himself in matters of land following the minister’s directive which was clear.

“What I only saw was my ‘induna’ or my subjects who came to feed me on the land issue involving Mr Gondwe.

“I am very disappointed that when there is a meeting at the council, my name is being tarnished and I am being insulted,” he said.

Kazungula District Council Secretary Raphael Zulu said Mr Gondwe was queried over the matter and he insisted that he was given the said land by Senior Chief Sekute.

Mr Zulu said Kazungula was established as a district 13 years ago and that the township was established in the same period, therefore the land in question became State land 13 years ago.

“We tried to advise the gentleman that there is a procedure to follow in getting land and that the procedure is that a person should first apply for the land.

“The Government is bringing a lot of development and that place has been planned for,” Mr Zulu said.

Earlier in his defence, Mr Gondwe said the natives of Kazala area, including his father, were not supposed to apply for the land in question.

Mr Gondwe said he had been to Kazungula District Council on a number of occasions to seek audience over the matter but to no avail.