Vubachikwe Mine case puts Zimbabwe’s rule of law and investor confidence on trial

GWANDA – The High Court of Zimbabwe has been urgently approached to intervene in a dispute involving the alleged unlawful seizure of Vubachikwe Mine, amid claims that a group of Zanu-PF thugs forcibly imposed themselves on the mining operation without any lawful authority.

Observers say that the case goes beyond a mining dispute and strikes at the heart of whether economic assets in the country are protected by law or vulnerable to political interference.

According to court papers filed by Forbes and Thompson (Bulawayo) (Private) Limited, the company was in peaceful and undisturbed possession of Mining Lease 16, which incorporates Vubachikwe Mine, before being dispossessed by six individuals named as respondents in the matter.

The respondents are cited as ZANU PF Matabeleland South Province Youth Chairperson Moses Langa, Aldonia Gondo, Madodana Sibanda, Taison Mutengeni, Takeson Moyo and Alot Ndlovu, with the Minister of Mines and Mining Development cited as the seventh respondent.

The company has filed an urgent chamber application seeking a spoliation order, arguing that the respondents took occupation of the mining location through self-help, in violation of established legal principles which prohibit parties from taking the law into their own hands.

The application stressed that disputes over possession must be resolved through lawful processes, not through force or unilateral action.

Forbes and Thompson is asking the High Court to compel the first to sixth respondents, together with all persons claiming occupation through them, to immediately restore possession of the mining lease to the company.

The order further seeks authority for the Sheriff of Zimbabwe, assisted by the Zimbabwe Republic Police, to eject the respondents should they fail to vacate the mine voluntarily, highlighting the seriousness of the alleged unlawful occupation.

The application also calls for the respondents to bear the costs of the proceedings on a legal practitioner and client scale, jointly and severally.

The matter has been brought under a certificate of urgency, with the applicant arguing that continued occupation of the mine by the respondents poses ongoing prejudice and renders ordinary court processes inadequate.

“The matter is extremely urgent. The dispossession is not a single past event but a live, ongoing, and intensifying crisis.

“Every hour that the 1 to 6th Respondents remain in occupation results in the irreversible loss of finite gold ore, permanent damage to the mining ground and infrastructure, and further entrenchment of their illegal enterprise,” the applicant stated.

“The need to act arose on 17th of January 2026. The Applicant did not sit idle but exhaustively pursued all available administrative and police channels.

“The pivotal moment confirming the futility of these channels was the public rally on 19th January 2026. The Applicant moved with utmost speed thereafter, instructing legal practitioners and filing this application.

“The Applicant has no alternative, adequate remedy. The ordinary course of litigation would be utterly ineffective as the Respondents are actively stripping the asset that is the subject of the dispute.

“Only the urgent, restorative remedy of a spoliation order can prevent a situation where a final judgment in the Applicant’s favour would be rendered meaningless.”

The company has maintained that without immediate judicial intervention, the rule of law would be undermined by allowing possession obtained through force to persist unchecked.

Investigative journalist Hopewell Chin’ono has argued that the Vubachikwe Mine case is not just a legal dispute but a live example of how political power is used to override the law and seize economic assets in Zimbabwe.

He further argued that this pattern of politically driven asset seizures, especially in the mining sector, has had a devastating impact on foreign direct investment.

“Zimbabwe has found it difficult to attract foreign direct investment because of the way political heavyweights in Zanu-PF and in government abuse their power to seize assets belonging to both local and foreign investors. This is not an isolated incident.

“It has happened repeatedly, particularly in the mining sector, with different mines across the country being targeted over the years.

“The cumulative effect of this behaviour is that no serious investor can feel secure, because property rights are not protected by institutions but are instead subject to the whims of the politically connected,” Chin’ono noted.