by NQOBANI MATHIBELA
GWANDA – THE authority of Zimbabwe’s judiciary is under sharp scrutiny after the Gwanda High Court granted a spoliation order restoring possession of Mining Lease 16, including Vubachikwe Mine, to Duration Gold Ltd, a company backed by British and Canadian investors.
The respondents, Moses Langa, Aldonia Gondo, Madodana Sibanda, Takeson Moyo and Alot Ndlovu, were cited for unlawfully leading and inciting the invasion of the mine.
A sixth respondent, Taison Mutengeni, was proceeded against in absentia after failing to appear despite proper service.
The Ministry of Mines did not oppose the application and filed no papers challenging the relief sought.
Before the High Court, Duration Gold relied on the mandament van spolie, alleging unlawful dispossession of peaceful possession by organised groups acting without legal authority.
The respondents, except Mutengeni, consented to the order, expressly admitting that their conduct was illegal. They further undertook to remove more than 200 illegal miners, together with their agents and followers, from the mining site.
The Court ordered the immediate restoration of possession to Duration Gold and directed all unlawful occupiers to vacate the mining lease without delay.
As the proceedings were civil in nature, no prosecutor was involved, and the name of the presiding judge was not disclosed in the court papers made public.
Despite the clarity and binding force of the order, illegal miners remain on site, openly defying a superior court of record.
The defiance has been attributed to political patronage, ruling party affiliation and an entrenched expectation of impunity.
Langa is the ZANU PF Youth Leader for Matabeleland South, and the occupation has been widely linked to party aligned actors who appear to regard court orders as optional when political power intervenes.
Zimbabwean law is unequivocal. Section 165 of the Constitution binds all persons and organs of state to obey court orders.
Wilful disobedience amounts to contempt of court, an offence punishable by fines, imprisonment, or both, and enforceable through the Sheriff or the police. Continued non compliance exposes contemnors to arrest, sequestration of assets and personal liability for losses suffered.
The Gwanda dispute sends a chilling message to investors.
It demonstrates that even when lawful relief is granted, protection may collapse when judicial authority collides with political interests. Confidence depends on certainty.
When court orders are mocked, investment retreats, institutions erode and the promise of constitutionalism rings hollow, at significant cost to national credibility, growth and the rule of law nationwide.
