“What used to be my field has been turned into a church. They have demarcated my field with clay pots and white cloths,” fumed one urban farmer.
The Chitungwiza farmer, though not an authorized owner of the plot, normally starts preparing the open space in September in anticipation of the rains for his maize crop.
Recently, Glen View residents watched local urban farmers team up to chase away congregants who were worshipping in an open space in the area, claiming they were the rightful owners of the land.
Lizzie Mugove, a Glenview resident, complained that the apostolic sects were setting up their shrines on their “farms” without consulting them. She claimed she had inherited her plot land from her now deceased parents who had been tilling the land since 1972.
Apostolic Lightness Church leader, Madzibaba Gabriel Ngovani, said the farmers were ‘persecuting ‘them because they were the messengers of God.
“They have no right to eject us and they can go and report to the police,” said Madzibaba Ngovani.
The Local Government, Rural and Urban Development Minister, Ignatius Chombo, has in the past defended urban farmers saying they were “essential partners” in fighting poverty. However, environmentalists are concerned that urban farming is damaging the environment because of its lack of sustainability.
Post published in: Agriculture