Farmers duped millions of dollars by a Zanu PF linked company, Lasch Investments, were yesterday shut out by Acting President Emmerson Mnangagwa.
The farmers who yesterday besieged the ruling party’s headquarters in Harare seeking audience with Mnangagwa on the fate of their flopped agricultural inputs scheme,
Despite their concerted efforts, Mnangagwa reportedly snubbed them demanding that they rather present their grievances in writing at his Munhumutapa offices.
At least 500 furious farmers, some of whom had been camped in Harare since the beginning of December, were angry with the Zanu PF leadership claiming they urged them to join the scheme, but were now avoiding them at their time of need.
The farmers claimed that they visited Mnangagwa on Saturday at his Sherwood farm and presented their demands and the Acting President promised to take the matter up with President Robert Mugabe, who is on his annual leave in the Far East.
They claimed that Mugabe through State House director Dzepasi Innocent Tizora had promised to give them fertilisers yesterday.
But they were dismayed when they came and found nothing. This forced them to call newly appointed Zanu PF youth league leader Pupurai Togarepi, whom they claimed was snubbing their calls since morning.
After failing to access fertiliser against “a promise from Mugabe” angry farmers dispatched a 10-member committee led by Manicaland farmer Agrippa Lewanji to Mnangagwa’s offices at Munhumutapa Building demanding to meet him.
“The VP has asked us to compile our grievances and present them to his office,” Lewanji said.
This, however, angered other farmers, who besieged Zanu PF headquarters claiming they had written several reports since last September, but received nothing while the farming season was advancing.
“What is new that he (Mnangagwa) wants us to write? We sent the committee to Kwekwe and he knows our problems. He should come to address us since Pupurai is not picking calls. We are not leaving this place until the VP comes to address us,” one farmer said angrily.
Absolom Sikhosana must provide answers

Meanwhile ZANU PF’s 60 Year Old Youth Leader was nearly bashed as farmers countrywide went into a rage against the ruling party ZANU PF “for defrauding them of of their hard earned cash which they paid for the Government Inputs Loan Scheme, which the farmers are yet to receive.
The scheme, which was a joint venture between Lasch Enterprises and the ZANU PF Youth League, has manifested an outcry in for instance the Mudzi district. Details obtained from Chimukoko village reveals that $2 was paid to AREX, $36 administration fee and $30 insurance fee, which guarantees a 25kg of maize seed, 8x50kgs of Compound D and 6x50kgs of top dressing fertiliser, which accumulates to $68. Chimukoko alone, which has three wards, paid $6000 which was deposited into a CBZ Bank account.
There are over twenty wards in Mudzi district which culculates to about $40,000 that was swindled from ordinary people in Mudzi. “The rains have fallen in most parts of the country, and yet we are still hoping for the inputs to come. Right now I don’t have any grain to plant, and I wish I would have kept my money and buy the little inputs with that money. Rains have come, and I need to plant but the government is cross legged.” said an irate Chimukoko villager.
In Harare, Central Committee member Absolom Sikhosana was on the 12th December detained overnight by angry farmers, while national director for youth affairs Tapiwa Zengeya was force-marched from the Willowvale industrial area to the party’s headquarters as farmers demonstrated against a company jointly-owned by Zanu-PF youth wing and Lasch Investment for failing to deliver inputs.
Over 15 000 farmers might have been duped of varying amounts of money they contributed to the company with the promise that they would get farming inputs this season. Sikhosana confirmed spending the whole night on Thursday detained by farmers at Cold Storage Company, before Zengeya was detained after coming to rescue his colleague.
Said Sikhosana: “I was detained by farmers on Thursday night after I had gone to explain the situation. Farmers said I was supposed to spend the night under harsh conditions so that I could understand their plight. When I tried to drive away, the farmers mobbed my car and blocked me until 4am,” he said.
“We cannot pay back farmers their money. The project relies on membership subscriptions and have since been exhausted. All along the management was trying to get support but it has not materialised. The scheme is unable to provide inputs because it has run out of money,” he said.
Meanwhile Police Spokesperson Charity Charamba has confirmed that the farmers reported a fraud case, while Sikhosana reported a kidnapping case. – Newsday/ZimEye