PRINCIPAL director in the Information ministry, Regis Chikowore and his family have been dragged to court over a nasty fight for a mine in Mashonaland West, the Southern Eye has learnt.
Source: Presidential aide in mine invasion row – NewsDay Zimbabwe March 13, 2017
BY SILAS NKALA
Chikowore, who is effectively President Robert Mugabe’s deputy spokesperson, one Herbert Chikowore and several family members as well as employees stand accused of illegally invading a mine belonging to one James Nyamarebvu.
Nyamarebvu lists Regis Chikowore, Herbert, his wife, Litten Chikowore, Aaron Chikowore, Tawanda Makamure, Joseph Siyabeka, Gift Jakarasi, and one Muzanenhamo F a provincial mining director for Mashonaland West, as respondents and is seeking an order barring them from looting minerals from the mine.
The applicant also wants the Bulawayo High Court to issue an order compelling and to stop them from preventing him to conduct his mining activities at the mine at Haggis 25 number 1021 BM in Kadoma specifically inside Herbert Chikowore’s farm.
“Sometime in March 2015, I approached this …court under cover of case number HC547/15 after third respondent (Litten Chikowore) to seventh respondent (Jakarasi) had violated my rights to mine the claims aforesaid,” Nyamarebvu submitted.
“Following the provincial order which was opposed, the …court handed down judgment in my favour… The judgment …was subsequently served on all the respondents. The …court will note that I took the trouble to serve Regis Chikowore (8th respondent) for the reason that throughout the dispute he has been entirely working behind the scenes to frustrate my operations at the mine.”
Nyamarebvu said Regis abused his position when he wrote countless letters to the Mines ministry senior officials and the Mines secretary using the Information ministry letterheads.
“Following service of the orders and judgments, and on September 8 2016, the deputy Sheriff evicted the first respondent (Herbert)’s workers …and destroyed their structures which they had built on the contested mining site,” Nyamarebvu argued.
“I am approaching this court for an order holding respondents in contempt of court. Judgment of this court affirming my rights to the mining claims has not been appealed or reviewed.”
According to Nyamarebvu, following the eviction, he sent Jefter Mutema, Jason Rugoho, Simon Tongowona and others to go and set up fence at the mining site as well as digging up pit latrines on September 10 2016 but Chikowore’s workers were frustrating them.
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