Zimbabwe: The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) has released an official report about the arrests recorded by them in the province.
As per the reports, over 300 illegal settlers were arrested in Masvingo region over the past week. The regional government clamps down on the proliferation of illegal settlements across the province.
Reportedly, the arrests came as the police have launched the operation ‘No to Land Barons’ that seeks to end the proliferation of illegal settlements. Those illegal settlements are blamed on land barons who are illegally parcelling out state land.
Considering the same, the Masvingo provincial police spokesperson – Inspector Kudakwashe Dhewa, said that the operation to stem illegal settlements is ongoing. “Until sanity prevails, warning that police would leave no stone unturned to bring an end to haphazard settlements and illegal occupation of land, the operation will go on,” said the police spokesperson.”
Inspector Dhewa added to his statement that the operation to eliminate illegal settlements across the province is ongoing, and to the present date, they have arrested over 300 people for illegal land occupation across the province.
Police spokesperson Dhewa also said, “Most of the arrests were effected in Triangle (Chiredzi District) and Masvingo District in the Mushandike and Steven areas close to the Masvingo-Beitbridge highway.”
As per the sources, the Masvingo provincial leadership led by the Minister of State for Masvingo Provincial Affairs and Devolution Ezra Chadzamira has vowed to decisively deal with the problem of illegal land occupation across the province with land barons and was fingered for being behind the problem.
As per the previous reports, over 2200 robbers were convicted by the courts in 2023. More than 700 are still undergoing trials as the National Prosecuting Authority and the Zimbabwe Republic Police intensify the fight against crime in the nation.
Provinces such as Harare and Bulawayo Metropolitan topped the list of convictions. In Bulawayo, 189 males were convicted, whereas 412 male armed robbers and 2 females were convicted in Harare.
According to the previous reports, Matabeleland North recorded the least number of convictions, as only two were found guilty of armed robbery. While, Mashonaland Central came second with just four convictions.