Moffat Mungazi
Solomon Bhumu
Weekender Reporter
A SAKUBVA landlord is accused of performing weird rituals to derail his tenant’s poultry business, which allegedly led to the demise of the business in only two months.
The matter was revealed by Brian Matundu after he was dragged by his landlord, Anthony Mapinda to Mutare Civil Court, suing him for US$390 rental arrears.
Appearing before Mutare magistrate, Ms Prisca Manhibi, Matundu told the court that he did not pay the rentals in time because for weeks, he had witnessed Mapinda and his friends conducting rituals at his fowl run at midnight.
“I can point to my landlord as the major contributing factor to the downfall of my project without hesitation. On many occasions, I saw him and his friends at midnight performing rituals at my fowl runs. My question is why everything went upside down after their rituals. Since then, the chickens started dying one after the other,” said Matundu.
Matundu said his business’ demise, which he attributes to Mapinda’s alleged actions, resulted in his inability to pay rent on time.
“If it was not for the derailing of this project, I could have raised enough money to cover all my rentals,” he said.
In his court application, Mapinda was claiming US$390 in rental arrears that he alleged Matundu owed him.
He claimed that Matundu’s last payment was US$60 for October 2024, instead of the agreed US$106 for the two-rooms he rented.
“I only received US$60 for October, not mentioning other arrears he had before. We are now in March, but he has not paid anything,” Mapinda said.
In his defence, Matundu claimed that when he moved in, they agreed on a rental fee of US$90 for the kitchen and the pantry he occupied.
He also claimed that the previous tenant paid US$70 for the same rooms.
“When I moved in, we agreed on US$90 as the rentals for the two-rooms. He knows that very well,” Matundu said, further alleging that Mapinda had increased the rentals after discovering that he had a thriving poultry project.
“Your worship, my landlord later discovered that I had a thriving poultry project, and decided to raise the rentals without consulting me,” he said.
However, Mapinda countered the claims, saying he hiked the rentals so that he could install a new sink, and also rolled out other developments that benefited Matundu.
“I installed a sink that he is also using, not even mentioning the electricity and water bills that I pay,” he said.
Matundu insisted that the US$390 total arrears included a US$100 increase in rent he had not agreed to.
He proposed reducing the amount to US$290.
“My calculations do not involve the US$100 that Mapinda is claiming, so I just deducted this amount from the total amount I owe him,” Matundu explained.
After considering the arguments, the court ruled that both parties would forfeit an amount of US$50, and Matundu was ordered to pay US$340 in installments starting this month.
The money is supposed to have been paid up by the end of April.
Online Reporter