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Mugabe minister's farm assets auctioned over $750,000 debt
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Farming equipment and livestock belonging to former Water Resources minister Munacho Mutezo are set to be auctioned today in Odzi, Manicaland, as part of efforts to recover a US$750,000 debt owed to his former business partner.
The auction, to be conducted by Megamania Glow Auctioneer, will see the sale of machinery from Mutezo's Fernicary Farm, which trades as Rutendo Farm. Items listed for sale include a John Deere harvester with wheat and maize heads, a 500kVA power transformer, a 24kVA Kipor industrial generator, a 90hp pump, a 110hp electric motor, and 78 main pipeline sections measuring 250mm.
Mutezo's livestock - seven heifers, six cows, one bull, and four calves - will also go under the hammer at a date yet to be announced.
The sale follows a long-running legal battle dating back to November last year, when Mutezo sought to block the seizure of his assets. His interpleader application, in which he argued that some of the property belonged to the government under the 2007–2008 farm mechanisation programme, was dismissed two weeks ago by High Court judge Justice Samuel Deme.
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed by Des Moines Farm (Pvt) Ltd, which sought US$750,000 for infrastructural improvements made to Fernicary Farm, including 5% annual interest and legal costs. The court ordered Mutezo's company to pay US$455,000 in compensation plus costs.
Des Moines Farm, represented by Taona Sibanda and instructed by Brian Majamanda, argued that Mutezo failed to cite the government as a party in the case, describing his attempt to involve the State in a private debt matter as “unacceptable and regrettable.”
Mutezo, who was expelled from Zanu PF in 2016 for allegedly supporting then Vice-President Joice Mujuru's failed bid to succeed the late former President Robert Mugabe, has been battling to keep his farm assets from being sold.
With the court ruling now being enforced, the sheriff has attached several movable assets at the Odzi property to recover the debt.
The auction, to be conducted by Megamania Glow Auctioneer, will see the sale of machinery from Mutezo's Fernicary Farm, which trades as Rutendo Farm. Items listed for sale include a John Deere harvester with wheat and maize heads, a 500kVA power transformer, a 24kVA Kipor industrial generator, a 90hp pump, a 110hp electric motor, and 78 main pipeline sections measuring 250mm.
Mutezo's livestock - seven heifers, six cows, one bull, and four calves - will also go under the hammer at a date yet to be announced.
The sale follows a long-running legal battle dating back to November last year, when Mutezo sought to block the seizure of his assets. His interpleader application, in which he argued that some of the property belonged to the government under the 2007–2008 farm mechanisation programme, was dismissed two weeks ago by High Court judge Justice Samuel Deme.
The dispute stems from a lawsuit filed by Des Moines Farm (Pvt) Ltd, which sought US$750,000 for infrastructural improvements made to Fernicary Farm, including 5% annual interest and legal costs. The court ordered Mutezo's company to pay US$455,000 in compensation plus costs.
Des Moines Farm, represented by Taona Sibanda and instructed by Brian Majamanda, argued that Mutezo failed to cite the government as a party in the case, describing his attempt to involve the State in a private debt matter as “unacceptable and regrettable.”
Mutezo, who was expelled from Zanu PF in 2016 for allegedly supporting then Vice-President Joice Mujuru's failed bid to succeed the late former President Robert Mugabe, has been battling to keep his farm assets from being sold.
With the court ruling now being enforced, the sheriff has attached several movable assets at the Odzi property to recover the debt.
Source - newsday
