Court slaps Assemblies of God with punitive costs

In a landmark ruling, the High Court of Zimbabwe has ordered the Assemblies of God - Back to God (AoG-BTG) to pay punitive costs after it abruptly withdrew a lawsuit seeking to evict another faction, the Assemblies of God - Spiritual Movement (AoG-SM), from the church's Marondera headquarters.

The withdrawal came after the trial had already commenced and the plaintiff's main witness, Nathan Sethlako, had been cross-examined by Advocate Lincoln Majogo of Mtetwa and Nyambirai Legal Practitioners, representing the defendants.

AoG-SM was cited as the first defendant, while clerics Luckymore Zinyama, Phillip Zinyama, and David Makwindi were cited as co-defendants. The plaintiff, AoG-BTG, was represented by Chipo Maphosa of Maposa-Mahlangu Attorneys.

In its summons filed in 2023 under case number R-HCH5359-23, AoG-BTG claimed exclusive occupation rights over Stand 2666T, Rujeko Township, Marondera, which serves as AoG-SM's head office. The plaintiff alleged that AoG-SM had "seceded from the Marondera Assembly" and therefore had no legal right to the property.

When pressed for documentation proving ownership or tenancy, the plaintiff initially claimed to have a lease agreement with the Municipality of Marondera dating back to "around 1978–1980." However, on October 27 this year, AoG-BTG sought to amend its response, replacing "lease agreement" with "agreement of sale."

Neither document - the lease agreement nor the alleged agreement of sale - was ever produced or discovered in court.

During cross-examination, Sethlako admitted that he had not produced any evidence of correspondence with the Marondera City Council to support his claims. He also conceded that efforts to retrieve the alleged documents had been unsuccessful.

The trial was set to continue on October 30 for further cross-examination, but before proceedings could resume, AoG-BTG made a sudden U-turn - withdrawing its summons, citing unspecified "hurdles encountered."

This prompted the defendants to apply for costs on a higher (punitive) scale, arguing that the withdrawal was prompted by the exposure of fatal weaknesses in the plaintiff's case during cross-examination.

In his ex-tempore (immediate) ruling, Justice Regis Dembure agreed with the defendants, ruling that punitive costs were justified.

He noted that AoG-BTG had been repeatedly warned in previous interlocutory judgments to produce the necessary documents proving its claim to the property - but had persisted with the case despite lacking evidence.

"Punitive costs are reserved for cases where a litigant acts unreasonably or abuses the court's time," the judge observed.
"This matter is a classic example. The plaintiff proceeded without proof of ownership and only withdrew after being exposed under cross-examination."

Justice Dembure further cautioned litigants - especially church leaders - against abusing the courts and causing unnecessary delays or expenses.

"The courts' time, the defendants' time, and the time of other citizens must be respected," he said.
"Church leaders, in particular, should exercise wisdom before rushing to court, as litigation carries costs."

In conclusion, the court ordered punitive costs against AoG-BTG, a rare sanction meant to discourage frivolous or bad-faith litigation.

The ruling sends a strong message that religious institutions are not above the law and that the judiciary will not tolerate abuse of the legal system for internal church disputes lacking merit or evidence.