The Supreme Court yesterday granted Crowhill Properties relief to enforce a High Court judgment to evict war veteran Adwell Chiminya from Borrowdale’s Remainder of Echo farm.
By Everson Mushava
Crowhill Properties, owned by Masimba Msipa and Themba Hlongwane, was granted a default judgment by the High Court last month to evict Chiminya, but failed to implement the order after the war veteran appealed to the Supreme Court.
The two parties have been locked in a bitter ownership wrangle, with the war veteran claiming he owns the property after invading it at the height of the land reform programme in 1999, before he was given an offer letter in 2003.
He also claimed he successfully applied for change of land use and accused Mt Pleasant MP, Jason Passade, who was already developing the land, of trying to use political muscle to force him out of his land.
But Crowhill Properties claim the land belongs to them and the offer letter was invalid because it was issued on private land. They claim they hold the title to the property.
Representing Crowhill Properties, Tapson Dzvetero, who instructed Advocate Thabani Mpofu, said his client received a consent order from Supreme Court judge, Justice Tendai Uchena and will proceed to implement the order.
He said both parties agreed that the High Court judgment was a default order and an appeal to the Supreme Court should be done with the leave of the High Court, which was not the case.
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“Justice Uchena ordered that they vacate the property by consent,” Dzvetero said.
“Chiminya’s lawyers conceded that our arguments have merit. The appeal was not properly done; they needed leave of the High Court because it was a default judgment.
“Like what I said before, no one has the right to take the law into their hands. Our clients have been vindicated. They are the owners of the property.”
Chiminya’s lawyer, Farai Nyamayaro said Crowhill Properties only got a provisional order. He said the Supreme Court appeal would be heard on an urgent basis.
“They (Crowhill Properties) were also pleading for execution pending appeal, which was granted,” Nyamayaro said.
“This means they have secured an order to enforce the High Court judgment pending our appeal. The case was not determined on its merit, which will be dealt with in our appeal.”
