Court dismisses Nduna's attempts to grab gold mine

HIGH Court judge Justice David Mangota has dismissed an application by Chegutu West MP Dexter Nduna in which he sought to be declared the lawful owner of Danly Mine.

The lawmaker had sued RioZim Private Limited for grabbing his lucrative gold mine in Chakari.

Nduna told the High Court in an urgent chamber application RioZim had erected a fence within his boundary and carried out mining activities to his prejudice.

However, Justice Mangota ruled Nduna did not give the court any evidence to prove he was the owner of the claim, and as such his request was invalid.

"The applicant, it is evident, portrays the picture that he has a claim at the mine. He insists that the second respondent invaded his claim. He produces no evidence which shows that he has any mining claim in any part of Zimbabwe, let alone at the mine," the judge said in his ruling.

"The prospecting license he attached to his application, it has been observed, has no relationship at all with the mine. Nor do their contents translate into conferring upon him the right to any claim in Zimbabwe. All they do is to allow him to prospect for minerals in Zimbabwe."

The court also ruled the sequence of events as narrated by Nduna in his founding affidavit were incoherent.

Justice Mangota said Nduna's application was contradictory and did not show a clear picture of events that led to the filing of the urgent court application.

"The application is everything which an urgent application should not be. It contains an incoherent narration of events. It is contradictory in many respects. It is panel beaten in other respects. It is a complete sham which cannot be condoned let alone accepted. The application is dismissed with costs."

Nduna approached the High Court last month accusing RioZim of invading his claim and a building fence around the perimeter to bar him access.

He also accused the local police of assisting the mining company and one Langton Ndlovu to take over the mine.

He sought a spoliation order against RioZim, claiming that it was the only way to stop the illegal mining at the claim which was causing him to suffer irreparable financial damages.