CCAP Church, villagers tussle over land in Mzuzu
The Singini clan at Luwinga in Mzuzu has accused the CCAP Church of grabbing part of its 10 hectare land for use as a football ground for the church’s primary school.
Spokesperson for the clan Owen Singini told NyasaTimes in an exclusive interview that Mzuzu City Council and Ministry of Land officials notified them that the CCAP Church would be acquiring part of their ‘customary land’ for the construction of Viyele Primary School football ground.
However, the Ministry of Lands, said the place in disputation is public land and not customary land hence the Singini clan should not lay claim to it.
Principal Lands officer for the northern region Felix Malumbo Ziba said within Mzuzu City there is no customary land.
“In fact that whole place is earmarked for institutional plots and the Singini’s would only be compensated where applicable if they are houses or crops. Otherwise that is government land,” Ziba said.
Singini said the clan rebuffed the official’s move insisting that they would not part with the land since it was the only part left for the production of crops for its people.
“When government gazetted our village as a city planning area, neither was compensated nor resettled. We have stayed in that land for generations and yet they just push us out. Is that fair?” he queried.
He claimed people in Inkhosana Luwinga’s have been internally displaced and left destitute with no means of production since they had nowhere to cultivate.
“For the past 15 years or so we have suffered at the hand of the City Assembly and government without any compensation,” Singini said.
CCAP Synod of Livingstonia General Secretary Reverend Levi Nyondo expressed ignorance of the issue but urged the Singini Clan to lodge an official complaint with the Synod.
“We have not yet received an official complaint,” Nyondo said.
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