By David Chidende

“Tears trickled down my cheeks as I helplessly watched the bulldozer graze my house to the ground, I knew that was the end of me,” said Muchaneta Marwei.

Seven years after the controversial clean up campaign dubbed Operation Murambatsvina which saw the demolition of “illegal” settlements and structures across the country; it has become a dreary endeavor for many to have proper roofs over their heads. The clean up exercise have left an indelible mark on the people in Mabvuku, Highfields, Mbare and other high density suburbs.

Muchaneta Marwei (40), a single mother of three sadly narrated how the clean up campaign has grossly impacted on her life, hopes and ambitions of her three children.

As a single mother, Marwei survives on selling fish supplied by the poachers from Lake Chivero. Through this initiative, she managed to send her elder son to school as well as pay the utility bills.

“I have already lost hope in the future of my children as getting meaningful education has proved a nightmare.

“Every night I helplessly submit myself to the Lord for guidance, the government has failed us as it cannot provide alternative and decent accommodation. Poverty and these shacks are what have become of us,” lamented Marwei.

The government introduced operation “Garikai, hlalani kuhle (live well) designed to benefit those whose homes were demolished but the project is still a hoax as it had only benefit a few while many are battling to redefine their lives again.

“Operation garikai has literally helped a few and most of us are living on the promise that looks never to come,” Marwei added.

It is however sad that victims of demolition moved to Hopley, Caledonia and Joshua Qabuko Nkomo on a rebuilding operation are enduring life without basic services such as schools, clinics and access to clean water.

A visit to Hopley and Caledonia Farm is greeted by sight of shabby temporary shelters which tells a story of shattered hopes of ever owning a decent accommodation.

There is neither running water nor electricity and residents, most of whom live in plastic shacks, gather at a communal tap to fetch water.

Regina Mtizwa (69) from Caledonia says life has become unbearable because she has to go and fetch firewood everyday at nearby Granville Cemetery so that she could cook for her two orphaned grand children she stays with.

She has vivid memories on how she ended up living in Caledonia.

“I stayed at a friend’s house in Glen Norah, for 20 years, but I had to leave after the cottage I occupied was demolished,” Mtizwa said.

“It would have been better if the government had left us there. Here we are living in squalid conditions,” she lamented.

Operation Murambatsvina not only robbed the people off their homes but also their pride and social life as some had developed strong links with their settlements and structures.

Social and political analysts concurred that if correctly implemented, the clean-up exercise would have been a good way to restore order and dignity of cities and towns.

University of Zimbabwe lecturer and social commentator Tawanda Zinyama said the government should have looked at the national housing policy before embarking on the housing scheme.

“The people will forever rue the exercise because it was haphazardly done. The national housing backlog stands at more than one million and then the government destroys accommodation for its people. Five years down the line, the ghosts of Murambatsvina is still haunting many people,” Zinyama said.

He questioned the timing of the clean-up exercise, saying the issue of politicking played a pivotal role since it was embarked on soon after the 2005 parliamentary elections in areas deemed to be opposition strongholds.

Zinyama added that the plight of those affected by Operation Murambatsvina would take time to be addressed.

“Unless there is a paradigm shift from the existing national housing policy, people who were affected by the murambatsvina madness will forever talk about it without tangible solutions in sight,” Zinyama said.

He predicted that if the issue of housing is not properly addressed, the situation will get back to the pre-Murambatsvina era.

“People need a place to stay. The situation is slowly going back to the pre-2005 state of affairs. The tuck shops and illegal structures are resurfacing in areas such as Glen Norah, Mbare and Highfield,” Zinyama added.

Amnesty International Executive Director, Cousin Zilala said that at least one billion people in the world are homeless as a result of forced evictions such as Murambatsvina. He however added that African governments should stop forced evictions and prioritize the needs of people living in poverty in their housing and land policies.

“We are saying to the government please stop forced eviction and come up with policies that ensure that everyone acquires a house,” said Zilala.

He added, “the illegality of these settlements demonstrate the failed nature of the government adding that all governments have the responsibility to respect, protect and fulfill housing rights.”

According to Amnesty International statistics, three out of every four people living in African cities live in the informal settlement or “slums” with little or no access to water, schools, clinics and security such as community policing.