FEATURE: War over tycoon’s cattle

02 Nov, 2014 - 06:11 0 Views
FEATURE: War over tycoon’s cattle Munaro Hoko

The Sunday Mail

Munaro Hoko

Munaro Hoko

Mr Munaro Elphas Hoko (55), a former farm worker at Central Estates, which is located about 15 kilometres outside Mvuma, is an angry man. And so are his former colleagues.

For three difficult years, which were punctuated by chronic poverty and uncertainty, Mr Hoko and 48 other former farm workers have been patiently awaiting the conclusion of a High Court case.

The former workers have taken their former employer, Mr Nicholas van Hoogstraten, to court demanding the payment of salaries and pensions.

For 19 years, the father of 15 worked tirelessly for the vast cattle ranching concern which was then one of the biggest in the country.

Central Estates bordered Mhondoro District to the north, Gutu and Chikomba districts to the east and north-east, Gweru rural to the west and Shurugwi to the south.

More than 26 000 cattle were at one time kept at the ranch’s vast and vibrant eight sub-divisions.

After the compulsory acquisition of the ranch, the former farm workers did not get any pension gratuities. More so, they did not receive any salaries in their last year of employment.

Of the 26 000 herd of cattle, the former farm workers refused to release a herd of 180 cattle, an act that ignited a fierce courtroom battle that is still raging.

Three years on, Mr Hoko is still optimistic that one day, justice will be delivered and they will be given their dues.

Tension is clearly simmering at the farm, with the former farm workers believing that the herd of cattle that they are holding on to is not enough to pay them off.

“We were left clutching thin air. Even if the herd is sold, the money will not be enough to pay off a single worker. We were duped,” a fuming Mr Hoko told The Sunday Mail Extra.

For the 19 years that he toiled at the farm, he is expecting a pension payout of not less than US$15 000.

“We are in a desperate situation. We have been stuck at this place for the past three years and most of us have nowhere else to go. I am only waiting for my money. Once I am paid off, I will go back to my rural home in Chirumanzu,” he said.

In a case of counting one’s chicks before they are even hatched, Hoko plans to open a grocery shop and buy some cattle using the money that he would have received as gratuity.

The herd of cattle has also created tension, divisions and animosity among the once united former farm workers.

Some of them are alleging that the few people that are directly responsible for the upkeep of the cattle are not sympathetic to their fellow farm workers’ cause.

“The majority of those that are taking care of the cattle are sympathetic to the former farm owner. Some of these people illegally drove 25 head of cattle to a farm owned by our former employer without the consent of everyone involved,” said Saidi Ajusu.

After the cattle had been illegally transferred to another farm, the former workers approached the courts and it ruled out that the cattle be returned.

“Those responsible are not taking good care of the cattle. The cattle were never vaccinated and recently, a cow succumbed to lumpy skin disease. From the way these guys are taking care of the cattle, we are definitely going to lose more cattle in the future,” another former worker who requested anonymity said.

There are also some allegations that the beasts are being sold illegally by those in charge. Mr Steven Mufundisi, one of the people who are responsible for the herd, refuted the claims that are being levelled against his team.

“We are operating under very difficult circumstances. First and foremost, we are not being paid and secondly, we do not have the money to buy the stock feeds and the vaccinations. Those that are complaining are doing so out of malice,” Mr Mufundisi said.

The majority of the cattle are visibly malnourished and carcasses of the cattle that succumbed to the lumpy skin disease are strewn all over the makeshift cattle pen.

In the event that the High Court rules in favour of the farm workers, the cattle will most probably either be sold for a song or will be condemned.

Mr Mufundisi, who has been at the farm since 1980, is optimistic that the former farm workers will win the High Court case.

“We have faced our former employer in court on several occasions and the employer dismally lost the cases. I am sure we are going to come out victorious and in the end we will get what is rightfully ours,” he said.

Before the acquisition of the farm, Central Estates was Mvuma’s major lifeline.

At its peak, the ranch employed more than 1 000 workers and the majority of the workers were Mvuma residents.

Basing on the appeals and counter- appeals, it is clear that the former farm worke rs’ struggle for justice is far from over.

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