Brothers lockedin land dispute

Lovemore Kadzura
Weekender Reporter
A BITTER dispute has erupted between two Mutasa brothers —Albert Chinamasa and David Kudumba— from the same clan, over the boundary of their fields.
The disagreement centres on accusations that one of them has blocked the road leading to the other’s field.
The matter came to a head at Chief Mutasa’s community court last week, where Chinamasa alleged that Kudumba had fenced off the road leading to his homestead.
Chinamasa claimed that the only way for vehicles to access his home would be through constructing a flyover passing over Kudumba’s property.
“The road passes through my fields, leading up the mountain. Although it is in a disputed area, David claims it is part of his field, and has sealed it off.
Headman Mudzindiko tried to resolve the issue, but failed. He even suggested that I create a new road to access my homestead, but that is not feasible due to the remaining space being a wetland.
“The only viable solution is to build a bridge or flyover for vehicles to reach my home. I appealed the decision at Chief Mutasa’s court, and Headman Mudzindiko was ordered to re-examine the matter. Unfortunately, he failed to do so and refused to provide a written judgment.
“I consulted with the council, and their engineer confirmed that constructing a flyover is the only way to access my home without trespassing through David’s field. Currently, a tractor is stuck at my homestead because David fenced off the road. Notably, the disputed road has been in use for over 200 years,” said a weary Chinamasa.

Kudumba fired back at Chinamasa, saying he fenced his field after Chinamasa had done the same.
Kudumba said they separated their fields with clear boundaries, and council officials can attest to this.
Kudumba claims that Chinamasa was informed by the council that the road in question was passing through his (Kudumba’s) field, and was advised to create his own road or take the matter to the civil court if he was not satisfied.
“We have separate fields with clear boundaries, and council can attest to this. The road was passing through my field. My brother fenced off his field first, and I followed suit recently, and he is now crying foul. He should have realised it when he first fenced off his field.
“This is not a community road, and the council discovered that it passes through my field. They instructed him to create his own road and also advised him to take the matter to the civil court if he was dissatisfied with their decision. However, he is reluctant to create an alternative access route to his homestead. I believe this is my 48th appearance in court over this issue. He has obtained peace orders against me, but I have chosen not to respond. Whenever there is a change in leadership, such as a new headman, chief, District Development Coordinator or magistrate, he revives the matter,” said Kudumba.
Headman Mudzindiko, a member of the same clan, testified in court that Kudumba had indeed fenced off the road, blocking Chinamasa’s access.
“I investigated the matter after hearing about the dispute. Upon physically visiting the site, I found it unfair to expect Chinamasa to create a new road through the mountain. Kudumba fenced off the existing road. With a tractor stuck in the field and Kudumba’s lorry on the other side, it is clear that Chinamasa’s attitude is hindering a resolution to this matter.
“At my court he dismissed me saying: “Iwe hausi Ishe ba”. He is so disrespectful. His case is clear, but should work on his attitude. I am begging Kudumba to soften his heart and open the road so that Chinamasa can have easy access to his homestead,” said Headman Mudzindiko.
The court said it will have an inspection in-loco of the area so that it can give an informed and fair decision. The court also urged the warring brothers to co-exist.
“This case requires the court to physically visit the area to have better understanding of what is taking place. The two parties are brothers, and we urge them to live in harmony and respect each other,” advised the court.