City of Bulawayo v Montaque Peter Stols & Maxwell Sibanda

HB 265/22

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Case Details

Court

Bulawayo High Court

Date

27 October 2022

Citation

HB 265/22

Neutral Citation

[2022] ZWHB 265

Outcome

unknown

Case Type

Application

Bench

Presiding

Dube-Banda J

Full Bench

Dube-Banda J

Areas of Law

Property LawMunicipal LawCivil Procedure

Keywords

Derelict propertyRates arrearsAbandoned propertyTitle Registration and Derelict Lands ActProvisional order

Key Issues

{"issue_text":"Whether there are material disputes of fact that cannot be resolved on papers alone","issue_type":"procedural","dispositive":"yes","related_facts":"Conflicting versions regarding property ownership and abandonment"}
{"issue_text":"Whether the properties were abandoned, deserted and left derelict under section 5 of the Act","issue_type":"mixed","dispositive":"no","related_facts":"City's claim of abandonment vs respondent's claim of ownership and occupation"}
{"issue_text":"Whether the respondent's agreements of sale are authentic","issue_type":"factual","dispositive":"no","related_facts":"Respondent's documentary evidence vs city's fraud allegations"}

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background

Facts of the Case

Background

The City of Bulawayo sought confirmation of provisional orders to sell three properties by public auction due to unpaid rates exceeding five years, claiming the properties were abandoned and owners could not be found. Maxwell Sibanda opposed the applications, claiming he had purchased all three properties from the registered owners between 1994 and 2003 and had been paying rates.

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