LEAD Demands End to Barbaric Demolitions, Call for Urgent Legal Reforms 

The Labour Economists and Afrikan Democrats (LEAD) has issued a forceful condemnation of ongoing demolitions across Zimbabwe, calling for immediate legal reforms to halt what it describes as selective justice disproportionately affecting the nation’s poor and vulnerable.

In a press statement released recently LEAD President Linda Tsungirirai Masarira demanded an urgent parliamentary review of laws that she argues have become instruments of oppression instead of guardians of justice.

By Vongai Masuka

The party highlighted the plight of countless citizens left homeless and traumatized by the demolitions, many of whom, according to LEAD, were allocated land by council authorities or fell victim to fraudulent schemes orchestrated by politically connected land barons.

“Where are these officials and land barons now? Why is the law silent on their culpability, yet swift and merciless on the vulnerable?” Masarira questioned in the statement.

LEAD drew parallels between the current situation and Zimbabwe’s colonial past, asserting that history seems to be repeating itself under the guise of legal authority, with laws prioritizing the elite over the needs of the people.

The party posed critical questions regarding the justice in punishing citizens who built homes in good faith, the accountability of corrupt officials, and the lack of legal protection for vulnerable populations like the elderly, children, and women facing eviction without alternatives.

To address the crisis, LEAD made four key demands:

-An immediate moratorium on all demolitions until a fair, transparent, and humane housing regularization framework is established.

-A full parliamentary inquiry into the roles of government officials and land barons in creating illegal settlements.

 -Urgent reforms to Zimbabwe’s urban development and housing laws to prioritize people over profit and power.

-Compensation and relocation support for all citizens already affected by the demolitions.

“We must never allow our laws to become the new chains of injustice. Zimbabwe deserves laws that heal, protect, and empower, not laws that mimic the whip of colonial rule,” Masarira concluded.