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Gibson Mhaka
RESIDENTS in Bulawayo’s oldest suburbs, particularly Iminyela, Mabutweni and Makokoba, who inherited property leased by their parents or relatives from the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) may face challenges after the local authority ordered that leasehold rights on these properties cannot be passed down through inheritance.
While inheritance laws typically dictate who receives ownership right, leased properties, particularly in those old Bulawayo suburbs where residents have been in a decades-long struggle with the council demanding ownership of the houses, present a unique challenge.
Residents in those suburbs in question, have been accusing the local authority of refusing to give them title deeds for the houses they have occupied for the past five decades. Following residents’ concerns, BCC Town Clerk, Christopher Dube issued a notice clarifying that leasehold properties cannot be inherited.
“The City of Bulawayo wishes to further clarify that leasehold properties are not inherited. As such, they should take home ownership schemes, which most suburbs can now convert to. In the event of a death for the lease holder, those in occupancy do not automatically inherit the property by operation of law but should make a strong case to be considered as new lease holders.
“If the property already has title deeds, any change of ownership is done through Legal Practitioners who act as Conveyancers using the Registrar of Deeds Office.
“Where an owner of a freehold property dies, the ownership can only change through the Courts in terms of the Deceased Estate Act,” read the notice.
There have also been accusations that residents in those suburbs have been sub-letting the houses in breach of their lease agreements. The council’s poor property management was exposed in 2022 when it was revealed that 90 percent of houses reserved for its security guards were being leased out by former employees for personal financial gain. Only 15 out of 142 houses reserved for security guards were still occupied by Bulawayo Municipal Council (BMC) Security Council Compound employees.
The lease holders were reportedly paying a ridiculously low $35 in monthly rentals. In an interview with B-Metro, Bulawayo United Residents Association (Bura) chairperson, Winos Dube expressed his belief that the local authority should have implemented a clear policy addressing the situation of individuals who have leased council properties for an extended period.
“As Bulawayo United Resident Association, we really feel so sad and so let down when we think of our people who have actually leased on council properties for so long.
“And after such a long time, they find themselves having nothing very tangible coming to them. We are actually feeling the local authority should have devised a deliberate policy that would actually take care of such individuals who would have leased council properties for a given period of time,” said Dube.
He added: “For instance, I would say, if there was a deliberate policy that would say if anybody who has actually resided and leased council property for a period of 25 years or so, that particular individual should be given a right to have the title deeds of the property because honestly, we are trying to figure out or work out the rates and rent that would have been paid by this person for 25 to 30 years, how much would that raise? In reality, wouldn’t that amount of money be equal to someone who would have purchased the same property? This is something that is food for thought and which we are advocating for our authorities to really consider.”
Dube challenged local authority councillors to pro-actively address this issue and find solutions to assist long-term lease holders.
“Not forgetting, taking in mind that constitutionally everybody has the right to shelter and the shelter does not refer to rented shelter. It refers to a shelter, which belongs to an individual who will have all rights of having that particular shelter. So, really, we have areas like Makokoba, Mabutweni and Iminyela. Some people have lived there for well over 40 to 60 years and honestly, we are saying for one person who has resided in such an area for such a long time they must be given an opportunity.
“What we therefore are looking for, it’s a deliberate policy that can be put in place so that it considers and takes these people on board and say they have really given so much in the form of money, paid so much money towards that property, at least they must be given the ownership of the property so that even at the time when they pass on, their relatives remain having something to lean on,” he said.
Online Reporter