Bulawayo houses to go under the hammer over debts

By Pamela Shumba

At least 23 Bulawayo families will have their houses and residential stands auctioned today for failure to pay debts owed to council and different financial institutions. An auction company with offices in Harare and Mutare, Hollands Auctioneers, is conducting the auction which has drawn the ire of the Affirmative Action Group (AAG).

The lobby group has threatened to block the sale to be held at a city hotel citing what it termed as “anomalies” in procedures taken to auction the properties.

Most residents owe substantial amounts of up to $20,000 to banks, micro finance companies and the Bulawayo City Council.

Institutions owed include CABS, ZB Bank, POSB, CBZ, NMB, BancABC, Kingdom and Rennaisance Merchant Bank.

Included on the list of those owed are National Blankets and Untu micro finance.

One of the affected business people, Thabo Ncube, who runs Setsail Equipment, owes Renaissance Merchant Bank more than $100,000.

He told Chronicle he risks losing his property in Hillside suburb worth more than $200,000.

“Initially I owed $45,000 but now it’s about $100,000 due to interest. I tried to pay $50,000 to call off the deal but the bank refused,” Ncube said.

“I was paid money by ZPC for services rendered through Tetrad Bank and my money has been stuck there since November. This has made it difficult for me to service my debts and it’s unfortunate that no one is willing to listen to my story. I’m prepared to pay but I can’t because I don’t have the money.”

He said Tetrad Bank was giving him only $2,000 per month.

AAG vice president Sam Ncube yesterday told Chronicle that while they did not condone non-payment of debts, it was not fair for companies to deny debtors a chance to negotiate before rushing to sell their properties.

“It’s mind blogging how some people are capitalising on other people’s properties. Tomorrow’s sale is a non-event because we won’t sit and watch people worsen poverty in Bulawayo,” he said.

“The country is facing a serious economic challenge which is affecting everybody and some people just want to take advantage of the situation.”

Ncube claimed property owners were not given adequate notice and argued that selling their property was in violation of the constitutional right to shelter.

He said the AAG had engaged the auctioneers whose officials claimed they had been instructed by the Sheriff and nobody could stop them.

Ncube accused financial institutions of charging unreasonable interest rates on loans, which he said made it difficult for people to pay back.

“A majority of affected people owe different amounts ranging from $20,000 to $100,000. Most of them have paid back the capital and what is outstanding are interests charged by banks and these micro finance companies,” he said.

AAG executive director for economic and legal affairs in Bulawayo Charlse Moyo accused the auction company of shortchanging residents.

“In their advertisement, they indicated that they require an exorbitant entrance fee of $125 and a deposit of $10 from bidders. This shows that they are targeting a few individuals who want to buy the properties and make more money while people suffer,” he said.

“They’re disguising it as a public auction yet they want to buy the properties at very low prices and put them back on the market for higher prices.”

Moyo said it was “illegal” for an auctioneer to auction properties in a city where they were not based.

“According to the Estate Agents Council, an auction company should be based in the city where it’s auctioning properties so that people are able to approach their offices for negotiations, inquiries and queries.

“There’s an element of criminality here and we’ll not accept that as AAG. Entrance fees should be at least $5 not the $125 that they’re demanding,” said Moyo. Chronicle