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Daniel Nemukuyu Senior Court Reporter
The Mbano family that was recently thrown out of Faraway Farm in Goromonzi, along the Harare-Mutare highway and spent days in the open got a reprieve after its rivals, BAMPH (Pvt) Ltd and Mr Arafas Gwaradzimba lost their application for eviction at the High Court. Justice Joseph Musakwa dismissed the application by the company saying it had no legal standing to file the eviction application because it had no offer letter.
The 24-hectare farm was initially offered to Mr Takesure Mbano, a farmer and businessman under the land reform program. However, under questionable circumstances, Mr Mbano had his offer letter withdrawn and the land was offered to Mr Gwaradzimba, who later handed it over to BAMPH (Pvt) Ltd.
In July this year, Mr Mbano raised a complaint with the land acquiring authority over the withdrawal of his offer letter resulting in the withdrawal of Mr Gwaradzimba’s offer letter. Mr Mbano was then issued with a fresh offer letter, which gave him the power to return to the farm.
At the moment Mr Mbano is the holder of an offer letter for the farm, but for unknown reasons, BAMPH that is linked to Mr Gwaradzimba filed an urgent application for the ejection of the Mbano family.
The company also sought an order for the imprisonment of Mr Mbano for contempt of court for his continuous stay at the farm.
Justice Musakwa, in passing his ruling, indicated that the initial withdrawal of Mr Mbano’s offer letter and the subsequent issuance of same to Mr Gwaradzimba was not clear to the court and remained questionable.
“Going by the manner in which offer letters have swung from Arafas Gwaradzimba to the first respondent, it is doubtful that the withdrawal of the offer letter in favour of Mr Gwaradzimba was done in a fair manner, but that is not the issue before me,” Justice Musakwa commented.
The court held that BAMPH had no legal standing to evict Cde Mbano and his family from the farm because neither offer letter nor lease was written under the company’s name.
In any event, Mr Gwaradzimba was the one who was issued with an offer letter and not BAMPH. The company, according to the judge, had no right to sue Mr Mbano over the land.
“The real dispute regarding the land in question has always been between first respondent (Mr Mbano) and Arafas Mtausi Gwaradzimba. “It is not clear how the present applicant (BAMPH) can claim to have possessed the land in question if one takes into account that all agricultural land vests in the State and its alienation is at the discretion of the acquiring authority. . .”
In the failed application, Mr Gwaradzimba on behalf of BAMPH, deposed an affidavit indicating that his stay at the farm was being disturbed by a group of youths who tried to evict him illegally.
Mr Gwaradzimba said Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services Commissioner General Major General Paradzai Zimondi came to his rescue and addressed the youths. “I sought the intervention of some senior citizens, in particular Commissioner General Paradzai Zimondi.
“General Zimondi addressed the youths and advised them that the property no longer belonged to Mr Dyer (white man) and his family, but to me, an indigenous person and former freedom fighter.
“Pursuant to the address by Gen Zimondi, the youths undertook to not to invade the property but the youth requested to stay on the farm until the 2002 election period was over. . .” said Mr Gwaradzimba.
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