News / Regional
Mugabe's minister accused of defying court order to vacate mine
19 Feb 2015 at 07:05hrs | Views
Andrew Langa, the former Zanu-PF Matebelaland Chairman and current Sport, Arts and Culture Minister and his business partners were yesterday accused of defying a court order to vacate a gold mine in Filabusi, Insiza district when the Deputy Sheriff of the High Court was blocked from carrying out an eviction.
Langa has been sucked into the mine ownership dispute with a Filabusi family claiming that he was fraudulently given 10 percent shares in the mine by Israelis Reoven Meyer Dray and Avi Habot.
Dray and Habot initially entered into a partnership with the couple - Nqobile Khumalo and Francisca Mufambi - before they were later ditched and the minister came into the picture.
Khumalo and Mufambi then approached the Bulawayo High Court which granted them a provisional order barring the Israelis from interfering with operations at the mine.
The couple cited Dray, Habot, Trianic Investments and Dorcas Tiwaringe as the respondents. Langa was not cited as the couple said they did not recognise his partnership with the Israelis.
Last month, Justice Martin Makonese ordered the respondents not to interfere with the applicants' operations at the mine, paving the way for the Deputy Sheriff to descend on the mine yesterday.
In a letter written on Monday, Khumalo and his wife, through their lawyer, Norman Mugiya of Mugiya and Macharaga Law Chambers, asked the Deputy Sheriff to evict the respondents.
Mugiya yesterday said by virtue of being in a partnership with the Israelis, Langa was part of those resisting eviction.
Following yesterday's decision by the respondents to block the Deputy Sheriff of the High Court from evicting the respondents, Mugiya said they would make an application for contempt of court.
Langa could not be reached yesterday as his mobile was unavailable, but last month he confirmed to Chronicle that he was part of Trianic Investments.
Oliver Chikarara, a director in the company in which the minister has shares, said they blocked the eviction as it was from a default judgment.
Langa has been sucked into the mine ownership dispute with a Filabusi family claiming that he was fraudulently given 10 percent shares in the mine by Israelis Reoven Meyer Dray and Avi Habot.
Dray and Habot initially entered into a partnership with the couple - Nqobile Khumalo and Francisca Mufambi - before they were later ditched and the minister came into the picture.
Khumalo and Mufambi then approached the Bulawayo High Court which granted them a provisional order barring the Israelis from interfering with operations at the mine.
The couple cited Dray, Habot, Trianic Investments and Dorcas Tiwaringe as the respondents. Langa was not cited as the couple said they did not recognise his partnership with the Israelis.
In a letter written on Monday, Khumalo and his wife, through their lawyer, Norman Mugiya of Mugiya and Macharaga Law Chambers, asked the Deputy Sheriff to evict the respondents.
Mugiya yesterday said by virtue of being in a partnership with the Israelis, Langa was part of those resisting eviction.
Following yesterday's decision by the respondents to block the Deputy Sheriff of the High Court from evicting the respondents, Mugiya said they would make an application for contempt of court.
Langa could not be reached yesterday as his mobile was unavailable, but last month he confirmed to Chronicle that he was part of Trianic Investments.
Oliver Chikarara, a director in the company in which the minister has shares, said they blocked the eviction as it was from a default judgment.
Source - chronicle
