THE High Court has confirmed the provisional order granted on February 28 last year for stay of execution of a judgment allowing Tony Sarpo to attach former Vice-President Joice Mujuru’s property over a US$226 000 debt.
Mujuru and her company, Ruzirun Investments, had in
September 2019 approached the High Court seeking an order stopping Sabrina and
Tony Sarpo from attaching her property.
The former Vice-President owes over US$226 000 to the
Sarpos through their company Peppy Motors (Pvt) Ltd, which is demanding the
money at the interbank rate.
Mujuru, in her application for stay of execution, said the
company had issued a writ of execution and notice of attachment despite an
application for rescission of judgment under HC6283/19. She then made an
application for confirmation of the provisional order granted on February 28,
2020.
The relief, which was granted in that provisional order,
was for stay of execution of the judgment granted in favour of the couple and
their company in case No HC 2954/18 and for an order for the release of any
property which might or could have been attached in execution of that judgment.
Mujuru also sought costs on the respondents on the
attorney-client scale and the Sarpos had opposed her application.
High Court judge Justice Happias Zhou ruled in her favour.
Justice Zhou said Mujuru’s liabilities, expressed in United
States dollar, falls under the ambit of the provisions of the Statutory
Instrument.
“It does not matter that the parties continued to express
the liabilities in US dollars even after the effective date,” Justice Zhou
ruled.
“The deeming effect of the regulations means that the
expression of those values must be read in light of the express provisions of
the law. The deed of settlement and order by consent did not create any new
liabilities but merely pronounced on the existing liabilities of the
applicants.
“Any other reading of the law would defeat the very purpose
of the law which was meant to convert assets and liabilities which existed at
the time of the effective date and were expressed in US dollars to RTGS at the
rate of 1;1.”
He said Mujuru’s obligation is to pay the debt in the local
currency at the rate of 1:1 to the US dollar.
In 2012, Sabrina and Sarpo, who are in the business of
selling farming equipment, obtained a loan from Steward Bank which they used to
buy various farming machinery. They sold the equipment to Mujuru’s company and
an agreement of sale was entered into on July 25, 2015.
Parties then entered into a deed of settlement on May 25
this year after Statutory Instrument 33 of 2019 had been gazetted and Mujuru
paid $76 000 on June 5 this year.
Four days later, the Sarpos requested payment at interbank
rate. Newsday
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