Source: Couple wins eviction order against illegal settlers – Sunday News Feb 25, 2018

Peter Matika, Senior Reporter
A HIGH Court judge has granted an eviction order in favour of an elderly couple, whose farm was invaded by illegal settlers and has been under dispute for the past six years.

Bulawayo High Court judge, Justice Nicholas Mathonsi, granted the order last week in favour of the couple, Mr Lames Alastair and Mrs Paola Carlotta Levendale, whose farm is located in Ntabazinduna, in Matabeleland North.

Illegal settlers invaded the couple’s farm in 2012 and the defendants in the case argued that they have a right to be settled on the farm, in terms of the Lands Act. The order was granted after Justice Mathonsi declared that the defendants in the case, Erasmus Ndlovu, Dumisani Ndlovu, Ndumiso Phangwana, Edmund Moyo and one Mr Dube had no right to occupy the land, as they had illegally settled on it.

Mr and Mrs Levendale in their founding argument stated that they are indigenous farmers and hold title deeds to the said farm — known as Goodview Farm sub-divisions A and B of subdivision of C of Maxim Hill. Mr and Mrs Levendale also stated that the farm was never gazetted for resettlement, since the land reform programme was launched, therefore any settlement on the farm was illegal.

“The plaintiffs have brought a vindicatory action against the five defendants seeking an order for eviction, along with all that had occupied the farm through them, from the farm and costs of suit on the scale of legal practitioner and client. They averred that the defendants illegally awarded and settled on their farm without lawful authority and after being advised of their illegal occupation they refused to vacate,” read part of the judgment by Justice Mathonsi.

He said although the defendants through their lawyers R Ndlovu and Company Legal Practitioners initially entered appearance to defend and filed a joint plea on behalf of all the defendants, they abandoned the other four, preferring to represent only one of the defendants.

“Indeed the other defendants defaulted at the trial despite being served with notices of set down for trial. Only the first defendant contested the action all the way to the wire. His defence is that he was lawfully settled at the stand he occupies pursuant Section 9 of the Communal Lands Act (Chapter 20:04), is the owner of the land he occupies and therefore strongly resists any effort to evict him especially as he is a holder of a certificate of occupancy issued to him by Umguza Rural District Council under whose jurisdiction the piece of land in question falls,” said Justice Mathonsi in his judgment.

Justice Mathonsi said the issues for trial were settled by the parties at a pre-trial conference held before a judge on 22 November 2017.

“Straight away, without more, it is apparent that most of the issues are superfluous either because the law as it stands settles them or they resolve themselves. I say so because it is common sense that the plaintiffs held unfettered title to the farm shown by the deed of transfer, I have alluded to which is untainted by the registration of a caveat symbolising the gazette of the farm by the Government for resettlement as happened to most white owned commercial farms seized for resettling people. “To that extent therefore the farm is private property and the registration of the title means that the plaintiffs hold real rights in the farm in question,” said Justice Mathonsi. -@peterkmatika