Brothers at odds over land

 

Weekender Reporter

AN enduring land dispute between two Zimunya brothers has spilled into the courts, exposing a coterie of allegations of land grabbing, violence and abuse of power by a local village head.

The case pits Gwinyai Haadi Kuhudzai against Fungai Zengeni, who accuses him of encroaching on the land allegedly belonging to his late mother.

Zengeni claims that the disputed land was legally purchased by his mother years back, and that he rightfully inherited it.

“He is trespassing on the land I inherited from my mother, and has even erected poles on my land, preventing me from accessing, developing or using it,” reads part of Zengeni’s court application.

He is seeking a court order to stop Kuhudzai from acting in such a manner.

However, Kuhudzai insists that the land belong to the Kuhudzai family, and accuses Zengeni of being manipulated by his brother, Stephen Kuhudzai, who is also the village head for Kuhudzai Village, under Chief Zimunya, in a long-standing inheritance feud.

In an interview with The Weekender, Gwinyai said: “I do not even know this Fungai Zengeni. This is the first time I have heard of him, and now I have been served with court summons. I am supposed to appear in court to defend the land that rightfully belongs to me. He argues that I am trespassing, and that I have planted poles on his land. Those poles are simply boundary markers for my land. This is a family issue being escalated by outsiders.”

In his notice of opposition filed at Mutare Civil Court, Gwinyai argued that the land in question is part of his inheritance, and that Chief Zimunya had already ruled in his favour in a previous community court hearing.

“The land belongs to the Kuhudzai family. I inherited it from my father. Zengeni and the village head are being corrupt as stated in the chief’s judgement. He is not even aware of the history of this land as he stays in town,” argued Gwinyai.

The dispute, however, is only the latest chapter in a bitter and violent feud between the Kuhudzai brothers.

According to Gwinyai, Stephen was using all the tricks in the book to frustrate his stay on the land following their father’s death.

“I grew up away from my father’s home. When I was old enough to return, I found that my father had passed-on, and my brother had sold everything that was supposed to be mine. I reported the matter to Chief Zimunya, and he ruled in my favour. The chief gave me back the land,” said Gwinyai.

But the conflict escalated dramatically in 2023, when Gwinyai confronted Stephen for continuously blocking his construction work on the disputed land, disregarding the chief’s ruling.

“He attacked me when I asked him why he was barring my builders from carrying out their work. We fought, and I went home. A few minutes later, a kombi came and crashed into my parked Mazda vehicle. When I went outside to check, a gang of 15 bouncers, including Stephan’s son, descended on me,” he said.

Gwinyai said the gang assaulted him, ransacked his home, broke windows, destroyed his television set, and stole US$1 400 from his wife’s purse.

“They beat me mercilessly. I lost consciousness. When I regained consciousness, I was inside their kombi. I overheard one of them saying they should kill me. That is how I ended up being dumped at Mutare Rural Police Station,” he said.

Despite being hospitalised for a week with serious injuries, Gwinyai was charged with violence.

 

He was later acquitted of the violence charges, with the court ordering restitution.

“To this day, I have not received a cent. Instead, the harassment has continued,” he said.

According to a judgement by Chief Zimunya, Stephen recently sold the same piece of land to one Jichita, but was stopped from doing so.

Chief Zimunya once again ruled in Gwinyai’s favour, and stopped the illegal developments.

“The land belongs to the State and cannot be sold, and no one should be allowed to sell it,” reads Chief Zimunya’s judgement.

“All I want is peace. I fought for my father’s inheritance through the right channels. I appeared before both the chief and magistrates’ courts, and was absolved of any wrong doing, but I am still being attacked, dragged to court, and tormented. Is there no justice in this land,” said Gwinyai.

The civil court is expected to make its ruling later this week.