Tendai Biti Criticizes Government’s Plan for Title Deeds, Calling It a Reversal of Land Reform

Former Finance Minister and legal expert, Tendai Biti, has strongly opposed the government’s plan to issue title deeds to farm owners, describing it as a rollback of the land reform program.

The government is moving forward with issuing title deeds, claiming that this will foster economic growth, food security, and social stability.

In a statement this week, Obert Jiri, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture, Lands, Water, Fisheries, and Rural Development, said the title deed program was an important step in securing land ownership for farmers.

However, Biti, who is the former vice-president of the Citizens Coalition for Change, dismissed the move, stating that the title deeds were invalid because they were annulled when the government took over the land.

“All title deeds on agricultural land were canceled. Therefore, (President Emmerson) Mnangagwa cannot issue title deeds for former white-owned agricultural land because those deeds no longer exist. This is another legal mistake on his part,” Biti said during an online discussion over the weekend.

He argued that Mnangagwa’s actions were reversing the land reform program, warning that in the future, cartels would control the land. “In 10 years, these cartels will own the land. In 50 years, we’ll be back to where we started,” he claimed.

Biti also pointed out that the current land struggles were now shifting to “black cartels,” similar to the cartels dominating other sectors like fuel.

Meanwhile, Jiri defended the program, saying the title deeds would allow farmers to secure financing for their agricultural activities and facilitate land transfers to qualified Zimbabweans. He added that the title would improve capital market participation and enable official farm subdivisions for inheritance purposes.

Jiri also explained that title deeds would offer farmers better security of tenure, encouraging long-term investments in their land. He clarified that any Zimbabwean with an offer letter, permit, or lease for agricultural purposes would be eligible for title deeds, with a thorough vetting process in place to eliminate fraudulent applications.

In his statement, Jiri mentioned that financial institutions were working with the government to offer mortgages for agricultural land, with title deeds to be issued once payments were completed or loans were secured.

However, Biti referred to Section 295(5) of the Constitution, which states that land cannot be alienated without an Act of Parliament. He argued that Parliament needed to be consulted before any land could be transferred and criticized the appointment of a private individual to run the program.

Biti also pointed out a potential constitutional conflict in the government’s plan, as Section 298 of the Constitution ensures that all Zimbabweans, regardless of race, have the right to own land, which contradicts the proposal that only indigenous black Zimbabweans should hold title deeds. He also highlighted that the Constitution mandates the creation of a land commission for matters related to agricultural land, calling the government’s actions a series of legal missteps.