In what appears to be an act of desperation, the developer of Irene Township in Mutasa District on Thursday distributed eviction notices giving some of the 12 original plot holders five days to vacate their land.
The eviction notices allegedly from the Sheriff’s Office in Mutare were distributed a day after lawyers representing six of the plot holders filed an application challenging a ruling in December that gave the developer, Ferro Consulting, the right to levy development costs from the plot holders to grant them title deeds.
The plot holders bought their land in the 1980s, nearly 20 years before the developer came in.
The plot holders, almost all of whom are over 80 or are now deceased, say the developer did not offer them any services at all, but they were “forced” to sign a deed of settlement with the developer in which they agreed to pay large sums of money ranging from $26 000 to $50 000 following threats that they would lose everything.
They bought the plots for about $5 000.
What is baffling the plot holders is that when they bought their plots it was clearly stated that whoever bought the remainder of Irene Township must “acknowledge that the 12 tenants/plot holders have paid in full for their plots and that they be allowed to take transfer when Township Planning requirements have been completed”.
When they took Ferro Consulting to court last year, the High Court in Mutare ruled that while they should be given their title deeds, they should pay development costs to Ferro Consulting and should also seed portions of their land to the company to cater for development costs, endowment fees, capital gains tax, conveyancing fees, stand duty, rates and other costs.
Six of the plot holders are challenging the ruling made by Judges Isaac Muzenda and Sijabuliso Siziba on 20 December 202 arguing that the developer did not carry out any development on their plots and that they signed the deed of settlement under duress.
One of the plot holders, Mike Chitewere, who bought his farm in 1982, says when their case was first heard on 11 November 2024, they were told that the Chief Justice had instructed the court to conclude the case by the end of that day yet the dispute had remained unresolved for more than 20 years.
He says that on 20 December, 2024, they were kept in court from 9am to 5pm.
“There was no ventilation as the windows and doors remained closed, and the main entrance door was locked, a deliberate attempt to keep the applicants inside and frustrate them into settling the matter,” Chitewere says.
“Some of the applicants (plot holders) fell asleep in court and lay on the floor due to exhaustion while others suffered asthmatic attacks…. Later that fateful day, two ladies could be seen now lying on the floor. As already stated, the applicants spent the whole day in that courtroom, only to be told to sign the drafted Deed of Settlement which they were not given an opportunity to read, but only initial to show that they had agreed to the proposed terms of settlement. In other words, we were made to agree to the terms of which we did not know.”
Ferro Consulting must have learnt about the application challenging the ruling because it went out to the plot holders with eviction notices allegedly from the Sheriff’s office a day after the application. It gave the plot holders until 17 June to vacate.
The notice of removal dated 12 June, did not have any stamp from the Sheriff’s office. One of the plot holders says her notice was handed over to her gardener. The remainder were left with one of the plot holders to distribute to his colleagues.
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