A RESETTLED Goromonzi farmer, Dominic Musekiwa, has approached the court, seeking incarceration of top Zimbabwe National Army (ZNA) bosses, on contempt of court charges for defying a court order barring them from interfering with his farming activities.
BY CHARLES LAITON
Musekiwa filed a court application on Thursday, citing Brigadier-General Stanely Mangena and ZNA commander, Lieutenant General Edzai Chimonyo, as respondents.
In his founding affidavit, Musekiwa said he had been living at the mercy of the soldiers, who recently battered his wife during a raid at their farm despite a court order barring the army from interfering with his farming activities.
“This is an application for contempt of court as envisaged by Order 43 Rule 388 and 389 of the rules of this honourable court. I seek, herein, committal of the respondents (Mangena and Chimonyo) to gaol for failure to comply with orders of this honourable court,” Musekiwa said.
The farm in question is Plot 2, Willesdenin, Goromonzi in Mashonaland East.
“First respondent (Mangena) is cited above in his official capacity, he is the one responsible for leading the members of the ZNA to occupy and carry out the unlawful acts, which I am now complaining about,” Musekiwa said.
He said on January 4, 2018, Justice Edith Mushore granted a provisional order under case number HC11908/17, where the army was barred from evicting the resettled farmers from their farming units.
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Musekiwa further said on February 14, 2018 the High Court then granted a final order by Justice Lavender Makoni, which effectively interdicted the army from assaulting and harassing the farmers and all those claiming occupation through them.
The court is also said to have prohibited the army from cultivating, planting, using allocated lands for farming activities, taking possession, occupying and cultivating on farm belonging to the resettled farmers.
“The first and second respondents have resumed interfering [and] trespassing into the applicant’s fields and homestead.
“They have also continued with planting maize, which act was specifically prohibited by this court and over and above they have continued their defiance of the court orders by using violence to attack me and my family resulting in my wife being hospitalised due to injuries sustained during the mafia attacks,” Musekiwa said.
“What brings the conduct of the first and second respondents within the ambit of contempt is the respondent’s intention and lack of good faith.
“Their actions are highly contemptuous to the authority and process of the court in that the High Court directed first and second respondents to desist from assaulting and harassing me and the other applicants …, but still they continue to do exactly what the court had ordered them not to do.”
The matter is yet to be set down for hearing.
