Chronicle Editor
Peter Matika, Senior Reporter
TWO Bulawayo businessmen are at loggerheads over a butchery situated in Nyamandlovu, Umguza District.
According to summons dated 21 January 2020, Mr Dumisani Madzivanyathi, who also runs a leisure spot East 68 in Bulawayo, is facing eviction from Silverstone Butchery in Nyamandlovu which is said to be owned by Mr William Kamusoko.
Allegations levelled against Mr Madzivanyathi through Mr Kamusoko’s lawyers Messrs Dube-Banda, Nzarayapenga and Partners are that both businessmen entered into a verbal lease agreement in July 2018.
“Sometime in July 2018 the parties entered into a verbal lease agreement wherein the plaintiff (Mr Kamusoko) leased out to the defendant (Mr Mdzivanyathi) his premises being Sliverstream Butchery, Nyamandlovu Business Centre, for an agreed rental of $550 per month. The said lease was to commence on the 1st of August 2018 and it was to be reviewed every year,” said Mr Kamusoko.
It was alleged that Mr Madzivanyathi paid full rentals for the first two months and then defaulted up to date.
“He started paying RTGS$350, leaving a balance of RTGS$200 per month, which he undertook to make up starting from January 2019 citing that he encountered problems for October, November and December 2018. In January, instead of the defendant paying the agreed ZWL550 plus the differences incurred during the previous year, he continued paying ZWL350 contrary to the parties’ arrangement,” read the document.
It was also alleged that Mr Madzivanyathi neglected to make the agreed payments and resulted in him incurring arrears amounting to $3 900, which led to the termination of the said lease and subsequent eviction.
In response to the summons Mr Madzivanyathi through his lawyers Mutatu, Masamvu and Da Silva-Gustavo Law Chambers, rubbished the allegations stating that he made various improvements to the property, which was in agreement with Mr Kamusoko.
“It was a term of agreement that I would pay RTGS350 per month as rentals. It was for a term of the agreement that I would renovate Mr Kamusoko’s property and repair non-working butchery equipment and also put up a durawall. It was a further term of the agreement that I would recover my renovation and repair expenses from rentals due to the respondent once I start operating.
“Pursuant to the lease agreement I did the renovations and the repairs to the tune of US$6 420, which is RTGS101 757 at the RBZ interbank exchange rate as against the United States dollar on 8 November 2019,” stated Mr Madzivanyathi.
Mr Madzivanyathi noted that the said property, through investigations did not belong to Mr Kamusoko but belonged to Umguza Rural District Council.
“If the position is correct, therefore (it) follows that our client developed the property. Mr Kamusoko has no capacity to run a butchery and we are reliably informed he is engaging a businessman from Tsholotsho to rent out the premises from him again,” said Mr Madzivanyathi. He went on to add that on 8 November 2019 Mr Kamusoko approached him saying he wanted the property back.
“He proceeded to take the property keys from my employee barring me from accessing the property. It has also come to my attention that the respondent has already been in the butchery as he has already been asking me about certain equipment that was in the butchery before my occupation,” said Mr Madzivanyathi.
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