Attempts to name drop in land dispute fail

The High Court has ordered the eviction of about 46 stand owners in Msasa Park and Chadcombe after ruling that their continued occupation of the land had no legal basis, bringing an end to a long-running dispute in which the occupants had claimed protection under the banner of Zanu-PF.

High Court Judge Regis Dembure upheld an application by Msasa Park property holders, who hold title deeds for subdivision of stand number 560, seeking the removal of the occupants on the basis that they had no lawful claim to the land.

The court heard that the 46 respondents had attempted to justify their occupation by alleging that the land had been donated to them through Zanu-PF Harare Province for use under the Zanu Mukuvisi Tashinga District in 2012.

However, the ruling found that there was no legal agreement supporting the alleged donation, and that the ruling party had formally distanced itself from the matter.

Zanu-PF Harare Province chairperson Godwills Masimirembwa submitted an affidavit disassociating the party from the dispute, weakening the respondents' claims of political entitlement to the land.

Justice Dembure noted that the applicants had produced valid title deeds confirming ownership of the property and that previous attempts by the same group to assert rights over the land had already been dismissed by the courts.

The court also referenced an earlier ruling by High Court Judge Emilia Muchawa, who had dismissed a related application involving about 800 stand owners, stating that the applicants lacked locus standi and had failed to demonstrate individual legal interest in the property.

In that earlier judgment, Justice Muchawa found that the alleged 2012 donation to Zanu-PF could not establish enforceable property rights, particularly as the party itself had disowned any such arrangement.

In the latest ruling, Justice Dembure said the issues raised had already been conclusively determined, including findings that the respondents were in illegal occupation of the land.

He noted that the matter had previously been escalated to the Supreme Court, where attempts to overturn the earlier judgment were unsuccessful.

"The same issue of the respondents' rights or interests in the land in question was clearly determined, and that decision is final," Justice Dembure said.

He further ruled that the respondents could not relitigate claims that had already been dismissed, stating that there were no triable issues or valid legal grounds to justify continued occupation.

"The same documents cannot now turn to create any valid rights for them before me," he said, adding that the group's shifting legal arguments amounted to a "volte-face" that did not alter the substantive findings of the court.

The judgment effectively clears the way for the lawful property owners to take full control of the land, ending years of legal wrangling over the contested stands.