The Supreme Court has, for the third time, struck off the roll an appeal filed by Ojei Ventures (Private) Limited and Redeemed House of God challenging a High Court decision to evict them from National Railways of Zimbabwe premises in Harare.
The matter was struck off the roll on Friday last week after the presiding judge Justice Hlekai Mwayera went through documents filed on record and following the hearing of submissions by both parties’ counsel.
Mwayera ordered by consent that the matter be struck off the roll with costs.
The applicants had approached the court seeking condonation for late payment of security fees for an appeal lodged last month.
In May this year, Justice Mwayera struck off the roll another appeal on the same issue with the consent of the parties to the dispute after the applicants failed to pay security fees as required by Supreme Court rules.
At the time, she did not make an order for costs.
Court papers show that Ojei Ventures and Redeemed House of God Church took NRZ to the Supreme Court after a High Court judge dismissed their application for a spoliation order in a long-drawn eviction dispute.
Ojei Ventures and Redeemed House of God Church submitted that they were forcibly evicted from premises in Harare which they had been leasing from NRZ since 2003 and carried out some developments.
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NRZ submitted that the applicants’ lease was not renewed due to rental arrears and the former tenants were given a three-month notice to vacate the premises in August last year.
The tenants owed NRZ more than US$200 000 in rentals.
Court papers show that when the three months elapsed, the tenants filed for spoliation at the High Court, which they lost.
