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Leonard Ncube  Victoria Falls Reporter
TRADITIONAL leaders in Matabeleland North Province yesterday said they are concerned that no company has honoured its pledge to contribute funds towards the provincial Community Share Ownership Trust Scheme since it was launched in 2012.When President Mugabe launched the scheme at the Hwange Colliery Stadium in October 2012, a number of companies pledged millions of dollars in seed capital.

Companies that pledged funds for the scheme include Duration Gold Mine, Casmyn Mine, China Africa Sunlight that promised to contribute $1 million each.

Hwange Colliery, Chibondo Mines, South Mining and Makomo Resources pledged $600,000 each while Hwange Coal Gasification pledged $500,000.

Phindile Ncube, the secretary for the provincial trust committee, who is also Hwange Rural District Council chief executive officer, said none of the communities had benefited as companies abandoned their pledges.

“None of the companies has made a commitment to the pledge as yet. You can talk to the chiefs, they’re the ones in a better position to talk about this, although they haven’t officially appointed a substantive chair,” said Ncube.

Chief Shana of Jambezi in Hwange District, who chairs the provincial chiefs’ council, said they had on numerous occasions tried to engage the companies without success.

“We still have a problem with companies operating in the province. We hear some communities in other provinces are benefiting but here in Matabeleland North nothing has happened,” he said.

“We’re a rich province with a lot of businesses and we should be leading in this programme but our companies are not forthcoming despite their pledges. Our secretary has written letters before but nothing is materialising.”

Chief Dingane/Nelukoba, who has been appointed to chair the trust after the death of Chief Mvuthu of Monde, blasted the companies for being selfish and disrespecting President Mugabe.

He added that chiefs from the province are planning to engage the authorities on the matter.

“They haven’t contributed a single cent in any district. We just hear that in Mashonaland and Matabeleland South companies are honouring their pledges, but here our people are suffering yet we’ve hunting, farms, lodges, mines, hotels among other businesses who should be ploughing back to the communities they operate in,” added Chief Dingane/Nelukoba.

Launching the scheme, President Mugabe said despite coal being discovered in Hwange over 100 years ago, local communities have only benefited as workers.

The government came up with community ownership schemes in all the country’s provinces after realising that people were not benefiting from riches on their ancestral lands.