The peculiar part is that the cronies aren't getting much out of the deal. They now own agricultural land that isn't producing a crop. What a valuable asset! And it brings in so much income each year!
No, I finally saw an explanation of how the system works for them. They get an allocation of scarce fuel for the farming operation. They then turn around and sell the fuel on the black market, making a large (by Rhodesian standards, at least) profit. So the money isn't in the farming for them, it is in the fuel trade.