By CHUSA SICHONE-

THE Zambia Land Alliance (ZLA) has commended the Government’s move to finally come up with a strategy which seeks to restore sanity in land administration.

ZLA chairperson, Ceasar Katebe said in an interview yesterday that establishment of an inter-ministerial Taskforce to deal with law breakers in land allocation and acquisition was welcome and long overdue. “As Zambia Land Alliance, we welcome the move by the Government to set up a Taskforce to deal with land allocation and acquisition illegalities. It has been a long overdue step that the Government has taken and in that regard we commend the Government for that,” he said.

Mr Katebe urged the Taskforce to be careful, diligent and cautious as it executed its duties and that whoever was found wanting regardless of political affiliation should face the wrath of the law. “There should be no sacred cows,” Mr Katebe said.

Mr Katebe observed that many people had lost their “hard-earned’ resources to acquire land, only to discover later that the land they had bought was illegal.

Mr Katebe said ZLA did not condone illegal land allocation and acquisition and thus implored people seeking to buy land to take keen interest in approaching the Ministry of Lands before buying so as to avoid losing their money on illegal land. “It’s our considered view that the Taskforce will execute its duties to the expectations of the Zambia Land Alliance and the country as a whole,” Mr Katebe said.

On Monday, an inter-ministerial Taskforce comprising the ministries of Land, Home Affairs and Local Government and Housing was formed.