HARARE – Following businessman Tendai Mashamhanda’s loss in his legal battle to keep his US$1,5 million mansion after the Supreme Court upheld a lower court ruling, the Sheriff of Zimbabwe has now announced that the enforcement of the eviction order will be carried out on February 29th.
Mashamhanda, son of prominent businessman Alex Mashamhanda, bought the house from lawyer Pihwai Chiutsi for US$230,000. He claimed extensive renovations increased its value to over US$1,5 million.
The High Court, however, ruled in November 2023 that the sale was fraudulent and ordered Mashamhanda to vacate the property. He unsuccessfully appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that the eviction violated his constitutional rights.
Justice Chinembiri Bhunu dismissed the appeal, stating Mashamhanda was illegally occupying the rightful owner’s property.
“The applicant has been in unlawful and mala fide occupation of the respondent’s property for close to five years in circumstances where the law is heavily weighed against him as demonstrated elsewhere in this judgment,” Justice Bunhu ruled.
“I therefore hold that his prospects of success on appeal are pretty dim indeed. The equities and balance of convenience favour the respondent who in legal parlance should ordinarily be in possession and occupation of its property.
“The applicant’s conduct in unlawfully occupying the respondent’s property in bad faith, to his exclusion for a period spanning 5 years without its consent is manifestly unjust and unconscionable.
“Considering that the applicant has dismally failed to discharge the onus of proving that he has any reasonable excuse for clinging onto the respondent’s property without its consent, the application cannot succeed as his prospects of success on appeal are bound to fail.
“Thus dismissal of the application will meet the justice of the case without turning it on its head.
“In the final analysis, I hold that the applicant has failed to meet the requirements of the test for stay of execution set out in the Cohen case and other related precedent supra.”
Mashamhanda wrote several letters demanding the resignation of Deputy Chief Justice Elizabeth Gwaunza and Supreme Court judges Antonia Guvava and Chinembiri Bhunu, citing corruption allegations and violations of the Judicial Service (Code of Ethics) Regulations, 2012.
