By Staff Reporter
Local Government Minister Ignatius Chombo’s ex-wife Marian Mhloyi has filed an appeal against a High Court ruling two weeks ago that finalized their divorce by granting the Zanu PF MP control of Allan Grange Farm in Raffingora.
Chombo got a decree of divorce in 2012 and all the property was shared except for the farm, which Ms. Mhloyi insisted should be split to accommodate both parties. High Court judge Justice David Mangota early this month ruled in Chombo’s favour and this meant Ms. Mhloyi had to vacate the Raffingora farm.
“The court established that the farm, which is the subject of the present proceedings does not belong to the parties, but to the Government. The farm cannot in that regard be taken as the parties’ matrimonial property.
“Defendant (Ms. Mhloyi) lost her status as a spouse. She became an ex-spouse of the plaintiff after the divorce. The interpretation of (a) section of the lease agreement does not have any room for ex-spouses. It has room for spouses.
“The plaintiff (minister) is, in the result, accorded all the rights in the farm to the unqualified exclusion of his former wife who is no longer his spouse but his ex-spouse. Whoever the plaintiff marries after his divorce becomes his spouse and that spouse becomes a co-lessee on the farm with him . . . ” ruled Justice Mangota.
Court documents seen by Nehanda Radio show Ms. Mhloyi appealing the judgment on the grounds that the “the learned judge failed to take into consideration,” her rights to the farm “were acquired during the marriage,” and that the judge had disregarded her contributions to the “joint venture”.
“Having found that the Appellant was a serious farmer, the learned judge erred and misdirected himself when he failed to redress historical gender imbalances in the allocation of resources by declaring,” Chombo was entitled to the farm “to the exclusion of the Appellant,” Ms. Mhloyi argued in her papers.
In August last year Justice Ben Hlatshwayo terminated the marriage of the two with the consent of both parties. Justice Hlatshwayo ordered the distribution of matrimonial property as agreed by the parties.
Not only did the case expose Chombo’s massive property portfolio published as a result of the case, but his affair with former ZBC news anchor Nanette Silukhuni was blown into the open.
Marian not only sought to divorce the bed-hopping love rat Minister but she also filed a Z$2 billion dollar lawsuit against his mistress (Silukhuni) who was branded “a classy man eater who has lived all her life pursuing rich men.”
As reported by Nehanda Radio previously, early court documents exposed the fact that Chombo, a former teacher, had tentacles in virtually all sectors of the economy.
The minister has interests in several farms, mines, hunting safari lodges in Chiredzi, Hwange, Magunje and Chirundu, as well as properties in South Africa. Local properties included 75 residential and commercial stands plus 14 houses and 5 flats, all dotted around the country. Not to mention 15 vehicles.
The Minister however claimed the list initially published in the state media had been exaggerated and that he did not own most of the things listed.
When a probe team of Harare City Councillors produced a report implicating Chombo and businessman Philip Chiyangwa in the illegal acquisition of council land on the cheap, the police refused to investigate the matter. Instead the councillors and journalists who covered the saga were arrested.
