Kuruneri's widow in legal battle to evict miners from farm

Paidamoyo Patience Kuruneri, widow of former Finance Minister Christopher Tichaona Kuruneri, is embroiled in a legal battle to evict two gold miners, Sipho Mlalazi and Thabani Ndlovu, from Ascotvale Farm in Mashonaland East. Kuruneri has filed for an eviction order at the High Court, asserting that Mlalazi and Ndlovu's mining activities, despite being licensed, are illegal due to environmental concerns and lack of proper permits.

The contested mining claims - Rosary 101 and Rosary 47 - lie at the farm's boundary, where Kuruneri argues that the miners' activities have caused severe environmental damage. She alleges that the Mines and Mining Development Ministry issued their licenses without an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) certificate, violating the Environmental Management Act (EMA) of 2002, which mandates such certification for any project affecting natural resources.

In her affidavit, Kuruneri explains that she and her late husband had owned the land since 1997 and began managing it shortly thereafter. She notes that, in 2019, her husband secured a court-ordered prohibitory interdict to enforce compliance with the EMA, which was granted in 2021, effectively invalidating any mining permits issued without proper environmental checks.

Unable to remove Mlalazi and Ndlovu without a court order, Kuruneri is seeking the court's intervention to legally enforce their eviction. Her legal team has argued that self-help measures would be illegal, leaving the eviction process to the court's discretion.

In response, Mlalazi and Ndlovu oppose the eviction, asserting that their mining operations are lawful and their documents are in order. Mlalazi argues that he has held a valid mining certificate since 2009, has renewed his EIA and inspection certificates as required, and that the 2019 court order does not apply to him. He contends that Kuruneri missed the two-year statutory window to challenge his mining rights.

"The applicant had two years to contest my occupation," Mlalazi stated in his affidavit, arguing that his legal rights to the mining claim remain intact and his certificates have been consistently renewed.

Mlalazi is also demanding that Kuruneri cover the lawsuit costs, claiming that his license has never been nullified by either the Ministry or the courts.

The High Court will hear the case tomorrow, with a decision anticipated on the contested mining rights and whether the miners' licenses were legally granted in compliance with environmental and regulatory standards.