The ManicaPost
Weekender Correspondent
A MUTASA family is in the middle of a land dispute, which has spilled into the courts, over a farm that was left by their late aunt.
Washington Ferengende (60) dragged his 71-year-old uncle Thomas Gutu to court claiming that he had disowned him as a nephew. This was because he had inherited the farm from his late grandmother.
The matter appeared before Mr Innocent Bepura at the Mutare Civil Courts last week. Ferengende told the court that he is receiving endless death threats from his uncle.
“My uncle made it known to me that I did not deserve to inherit the land and he now threatens me with death if I do not leave the land in question. I now fear walking at night because the threats keep coming. He once choked and assaulted me because of the land,” he said.
Ferengende said the threats had prompted him to report the matter to Chief Mutasa’s court who then referred him to the civil courts. Diverting from the matter at hand, Gutu told the court that villagers were living in fear of Ferengende as he was invading their privacy by spying on them using his pair of binoculars. He said when he once approached him over the issue, Ferengende assaulted him and threatened him with unspecified actions. However, Ferengende rubbished the story and told the court that he is the one being threatened and assaulted.
He did not deny infringing his uncle’s privacy with his pair of binoculars but said the matter at hand, which he had reported was that of the land wrangle which was between himself and his uncle.
Gutu told the court that he had a good reason to threaten his nephew. He said Ferengende was selling the land to strangers ignoring yet future generations in the family that must also benefit from it. Mr Bepura issued a binding over protection order which is valid for five years.
He said it was clear that there was bad blood between Ferengende and Gutu.
“Children look up to you and you should not set a wrong example for them, rather make up and impart knowledge to the children,” said Mr Bepura as he passed the order.
