Chronicle Editor
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Senior Reporter
AN 82-year-old widow has said she is failing to move into her Mzilikazi suburb home which her daughter bought her nearly two decades ago because a tenant is allegedly refusing to vacate the premises.
Mrs Melta Makwelo’s daughter, who is based in the United Kingdom, bought her House Number T31 in Mzilikazi suburb which was in the late William Banda’s Estate. Makwelo was assisted by Ms Thandiwe Nkomo, the late Vice-President Joshua Nkomo’s daughter. Ownership change was done with Mrs Makwelo becoming the new owner and up to now, the house is registered under her name.
Ms Nkomo said while she may not remember the finer details since the issue took place a long time ago, she knows that the process was done above board. “As you may appreciate, it has been a long time and I thought this matter had since been settled.
The whole process, however, was done above board with the assistance of a reputable Executor,” said Ms Nkomo.
However, Mrs Makwelo alleges Mr Roy Moyo a tenant, has been refusing to vacate the house claiming that the Executor, one Ms Babra Lunga, who has since died but who was working for Impact Trust and Executors, fraudulently sold the house without his knowledge. Mr Moyo claims the late owner of the house, Mr Banda, was his grandfather.
The impasse forced Mrs Makwelo to seek legal redress which saw the Small Claims court issuing a judgment on October 9, 2007 ordering Mr Moyo to vacate the premises on or before December 31, 2007.
To seek reprieve Mr Moyo made an urgent chamber application at the High Court under case number HC2442/07 citing Mrs Makwelo as the first respondent and the Messenger of Court as the second respondent.
The High Court granted Mr Moyo a stay of execution on December 3, 2007 until the matter was finalised at the High Court.
“All I want is to live in my house, my daughter bought that house but Mr Moyo has been refusing to vacate for reasons best known by him. We have been to the Courts where he was initially ordered to vacate but he too filed a counter claim and I don’t know what he told the Court officials because I wasn’t even called to testify, I only know that the judgment was passed which allows him to continue staying in that house until the issue is finalised but it has been a long time since 2007 and I wonder why it is taking so long,” said Mrs Makwelo during an interview at her lodgings in Mpopoma suburb.
“If you visit Council offices, the house is registered in my name, all the bills from council come in my name,” she said.
Mr Moyo said the house was fraudulently sold by Ms Lunga hence his decision to seek legal redress.
“This house was once repossessed by BCC in 1999 due to unpaid debts. We had to raise money through the sale of our cattle to settle the bill. We were working with Ms Lunga who pretended to be our helper only to sell the house without our knowledge,” claimed Mr Moyo.
During the interview, Mr Moyo phoned his lawyers who instructed him not to entertain the news crew.
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