Latwell Nyangu
The High Court has imposed punitive costs on Assemblies of God-Back to God (AoGBTG) after it withdrew its case against another church, Assemblies of God-Spiritual Movement (AoGSM), which it sought to evict from its headquarters in Marondera.
The ruling by Justice Regis Dembure has effectively ended a two-year holy war that began in 2023 over the ownership of Stand Number 2666T, Rujeko Township, Marondera.
However, the withdrawal occurred after the trial had already started, and the plaintiff’s main witness, Nathan Sethlako, had been cross-examined by the defendant’s counsel, Lincoln Majogo of Mtetwa and Nyambirai Legal Practitioners.
In the eviction summons under R-HCH5359-23, AoGSM was cited as the first defendant, while clerics Luckymore Zinyama, Phillip Zinyama, and David Makwindi were named as additional defendants.
Chipo Maphosa of Maposa-Mahlangu Attorneys represented the plaintiff.
Following the application for withdrawal, Justice Dembure noted that costs on a higher scale are punitive in nature and reserved for special circumstances. The judge remarked that punitive costs were warranted in this case due to the plaintiff’s conduct.
In his ruling, Justice Dembure observed that the plaintiff had been made aware in previous interlocutory judgments of the need to provide documentation proving their rights to the property.
Despite these warnings, the plaintiff persisted with the case.
The defendants contended that the withdrawal was prompted solely by the cross-examination, which revealed fundamental weaknesses in the plaintiff’s case.
The judge further cautioned litigants against abusing court processes, highlighting the unnecessary waste of time for the court, other citizens, and the defendants.
Justice Dembure also warned church leaders to be sensible when contemplating legal action, considering the associated costs.
He ultimately awarded punitive costs against the plaintiff. “The application for leave to withdraw the matter be and is hereby granted.
“The matter having been withdrawn be and is hereby struck off the roll and the plaintiff shall pay the defendants’ wasted costs on a legal practitioner and client scale,” noted Justice Dembure.
In its summons filed in 2023, AoG-BTG, represented by Sethlako, alleged that AoG-SM had seceded from the Marondera Assembly.
The plaintiff claimed it had exclusive rights to occupy the first defendant’s head office, located at Stand 2666T, Rujeko Township, Marondera, but failed to specify the documents that granted it such rights.
When the defendant requested further particulars regarding these details, the plaintiff responded that it had a lease agreement with the Municipality of Marondera, entered into “in or about 1978-1980.”
However, on October 27, the plaintiff applied to amend its response, substituting “lease agreement” with “agreement of sale.”
Neither the lease agreement nor the agreement of sale was ever produced in court.
During his testimony, Sethlako claimed that the plaintiff had lost its lease agreement or agreement of sale, and attempts to recover copies from the Municipality of Marondera were unsuccessful.
Under cross-examination, Sethlako conceded that he had not provided any evidence of correspondence with the Marondera City Council.
The parties were scheduled to resume the trial on October 30, for the continuation of cross-examination when the plaintiff unexpectedly announced its withdrawal of the summons, citing “hurdles that the plaintiff had encountered.”
The defendants then sought costs on a higher scale
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