A storm is brewing in Mashonaland East Province where war veterans and local farmers are up in arms over the controversial seizure of their land—some of which they have occupied and developed for over two decades to make way for business mogul Billy Rautenbach’s development empire.
The conflict has escalated following revelations that Rautenbach’s company, Marimba Residential Properties Limited, received the title deed for Springs Farm on June 5, 2025 well before a court challenge by the evicted farmers could be heard at the High Court.
The move has triggered accusations of favoritism directed at Agriculture Minister Anxious Masuka and Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe both of whom are being accused of aiding Rautenbach’s land acquisition at the expense of productive black farmers including former liberation fighters.
“We feel betrayed, we feel let down because the land in this country did not come on a silver platter. People went to war, blood was lost for land to be reclaimed. This is a pure reversal of the land reform,” said Unico Chikomo farmer at Springs Farm.
At the heart of the controversy is the question of how Rautenbach obtained official ownership of Springs Farm before the courts could adjudicate on the matter.
The land was taken from local farmers after the government withdrew their offer letters, despite long-standing development and investment on the property.
The farmers had approached the High Court on August 2, 2024 to stop the transfer, but the issuance of the title deed to Rautenbach has raised serious red flags.
“Billy Rautenbach is not new to us, he once came trying to buy out people. We were surprised to see the Ministry of Lands evicting us and we were told it’s compensation for Billy for Aspindale,” said Chikomo.
The eviction is reportedly meant to compensate Rautenbach for 180 hectares of land in Harare’s Aspindale Park, which he claims to have lost to housing cooperatives linked to Zanu PF. However, court records tell a different story.
In a March 25, 2019 High Court ruling, Justice Philda Muzofa declared that Rautenbach’s companies had no legal title over the Aspindale land.
The court sided with housing cooperatives that had been granted development rights by the government as far back as 2004.
“The land which Billy Rautenbach claims to have lost in Aspindale was never his. He failed to produce title deeds and consequently lost the case in the High Court. He cannot be compensated for something he never owned and lost,” the farmers wrote to War Veterans Minister Monica Mavhunga.
Despite the ruling, Garwe offered over 1,000 hectares of productive farmland including Springs and neighboring Stuhm Farm to Rautenbach in a letter dated March 14, 2025.
The letter explicitly states that the offer was to settle his claims over Aspindale.
“The Ministry shall facilitate title deeds processing once you accept the offer,” Garwe wrote.
The land seizure has not only displaced farmers but also angered former MPs who were previously allocated portions of Stuhm Farm under an official land redistribution program in 2019.
Many had signed lease agreements and made investments on the property, only to be blindsided by the reallocation to Rautenbach.
“We have invested in the farm… building schools, clearing land, improving irrigation, acquiring equipment, and building homes. The government of Zimbabwe is party to these joint ventures, some of which run until 2029,” the affected farmers said.
Critics say this blatant disregard for legal rulings and property rights undermines President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s much-publicized Title Deeds Programme, which aims to empower citizens with formal land ownership.
“This is happening at a time when government claims to be resolving land tenure security. How can land be taken from black farmers and war veterans to enrich a politically connected tycoon?,” said one former MP.
For the Chikomo family, the stakes could not be higher.
“What is painful is that President Mnangagwa has been clear that no war veteran must lose land, especially widows and children… but here we are, being evicted like squatters,” he said.
