A legal battle unfolding at the High Court of Zimbabwe has revealed serious claims of fraudulent land dealings involving the Ministry of Local Government and Public Works, its Minister Daniel Garwe, and cement producer PPC Zimbabwe.
Nyikavanhu Housing Cooperative, the complainant in the matter, alleges that it held a legitimate offer for a significant parcel of land before it was controversially transferred to PPC, possibly through forged documentation.
The controversy gained further attention when President Emmerson Mnangagwa recently officiated at a ceremony handing over title deeds to PPC for the contested land—an event reportedly organized at the invitation of Minister Garwe.
The legal case, registered as HCH/2025, concerns a long-standing dispute over the remainder of Subdivision E of Arlington Estate, a substantial piece of land.
According to statements from PPC’s Head of Legal and Compliance, Mr. Tawanda Chiurayi, the company welcomed the government’s decision to restore ownership of the land, which he claimed PPC had held before it was mistakenly acquired in 2010. He described the recent ceremony as the formal return of the property.
Court filings, however, present a different narrative. Nyikavanhu Housing Cooperative was formally established in 2005 and claims it was issued an official land offer by the Ministry on January 15, 2006. They assert that this offer has never been revoked.
The cooperative recounts years of efforts to get their developmental layout plans approved, only to be met with silence from the Ministry. Matters escalated when portions of the land they occupied began being reassigned—allegedly by the Secretary for Local Government—to new entities, including PPC Zimbabwe, named as the second respondent in the case.
Nyikavanhu accuses PPC of unlawfully receiving land that was already under their legitimate claim and alleges the company hired Secureit (Pvt) Ltd to patrol the disputed site. In 2017, PPC installed signage claiming the land, prompting Nyikavanhu to request their removal and lodge complaints, all of which reportedly went unanswered.
The cooperative then sought legal recourse to compel the removal of PPC’s billboards. During this case, PPC presented an offer letter dated February 9, 2024—documents Nyikavanhu had not seen before.
To the cooperative’s surprise, Deed of Transfer No. 6168/2024 was issued in PPC’s name in March 2025. Nyikavanhu contends that this development signals a deliberate scheme to seize land already allocated to them.
Describing the situation as manipulated and strategically orchestrated, the cooperative withdrew its original legal application and has now filed a new lawsuit seeking comprehensive remedies.
“Due to the continuous introduction of new documents by PPC during court proceedings, the case was fundamentally altered. We abandoned that case and are now applying for its nullification, as it no longer held meaning,” the court papers explain.
Nyikavanhu insists it holds valid documentation affirming its legal claim to the land, backed by multiple government institutions, including the Office of the Attorney General. They also point out that the land is zoned for residential use, which they say contradicts PPC’s operations as a cement manufacturer.
The documents also cite a prior judgment (HCH1660/24) that invalidated a previous deed of transfer related to the same land.
Nyikavanhu is now asking the court to nullify the offer letter granted to PPC on February 9, 2024, and to revoke Deed of Transfer No. 6168/2024. Additionally, they are seeking a court order to bar PPC from occupying the land, authorizing the Sheriff to evict them if necessary, and an interdict preventing the Ministry from reallocating the land to any other entity.
PPC Zimbabwe runs cement manufacturing operations in Harare and Bulawayo and a clinker plant in Colleen Bawn. The company is part of a broader group headquartered in South Africa and operates in several other African nations, including Botswana, Ethiopia, the DRC, and Rwanda.
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