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Mutezo gets Supreme Court reprieve
3 hrs ago |
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The Supreme Court has granted Fernicary Farm (trading as Rutendo Farm), owned by former minister Engineer Munacho Mutezo, a reprieve by reinstating its appeal against a High Court ruling that awarded Des Monies Farm (Pvt) Ltd US$455 000 in compensation for alleged farm improvements.
Des Monies Farm, represented by Philemon Thambatshira Matibe, had moved from Botswana in 2019 to take over Rutendo Farm on an eight-year lease. After being evicted for alleged non-payment of rentals and vandalism of equipment, Matibe claimed that he had invested over US$750 000 in improvements to the farm. These included repairing internal and external roads, erecting fences to mark the farm boundaries, refurbishing the main house, and maintaining irrigation infrastructure and water reticulation systems.
Rutendo Farm disputed the claims, arguing that the lease required prior approval and an independent valuation for any improvements, conditions it said were not met. The farm also contended that the property was already well-equipped with tractors, ploughs, irrigation systems, barns, and well-maintained roads, and described some of the alleged improvements, such as bush clearance, as operational costs rather than genuine enhancements.
The High Court had initially ruled in favor of Des Monies Farm, awarding US$455 000 in damages. Rutendo Farm sought to appeal the decision, but procedural delays resulted in the appeal being deemed abandoned.
Supreme Court judge George Chiweshe ruled that despite the missed timelines, the appeal had reasonable prospects of success, allowing the case to proceed. "Although the delay in complying with the infringed rule is not inordinate, the explanation for such delay is not plausible. However, I am of the view that the intended appeal has reasonable prospects of success. It is for that reason that the application must succeed," Justice Chiweshe said.
With the appeal reinstated, the case will now be heard on its merits, potentially altering the outcome of the compensation dispute. The ruling follows the auctioning of Rutendo Farm’s machinery and livestock in August to settle the High Court-ordered compensation after the delay in filing the Supreme Court appeal.
Des Monies Farm, represented by Philemon Thambatshira Matibe, had moved from Botswana in 2019 to take over Rutendo Farm on an eight-year lease. After being evicted for alleged non-payment of rentals and vandalism of equipment, Matibe claimed that he had invested over US$750 000 in improvements to the farm. These included repairing internal and external roads, erecting fences to mark the farm boundaries, refurbishing the main house, and maintaining irrigation infrastructure and water reticulation systems.
Rutendo Farm disputed the claims, arguing that the lease required prior approval and an independent valuation for any improvements, conditions it said were not met. The farm also contended that the property was already well-equipped with tractors, ploughs, irrigation systems, barns, and well-maintained roads, and described some of the alleged improvements, such as bush clearance, as operational costs rather than genuine enhancements.
The High Court had initially ruled in favor of Des Monies Farm, awarding US$455 000 in damages. Rutendo Farm sought to appeal the decision, but procedural delays resulted in the appeal being deemed abandoned.
Supreme Court judge George Chiweshe ruled that despite the missed timelines, the appeal had reasonable prospects of success, allowing the case to proceed. "Although the delay in complying with the infringed rule is not inordinate, the explanation for such delay is not plausible. However, I am of the view that the intended appeal has reasonable prospects of success. It is for that reason that the application must succeed," Justice Chiweshe said.
With the appeal reinstated, the case will now be heard on its merits, potentially altering the outcome of the compensation dispute. The ruling follows the auctioning of Rutendo Farm’s machinery and livestock in August to settle the High Court-ordered compensation after the delay in filing the Supreme Court appeal.
Source - Sunday Mail
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