Matthew Hopgood v The Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Water and Rural Resettlement

HH 266-23

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Case Details

Court

Harare High Court

Date

3 May 2023

Citation

HH 266-23

Neutral Citation

[2023] ZWHH 266

Outcome

unknown

Case Type

Review

Bench

Presiding

Musithu J

Full Bench

Musithu J

Areas of Law

Administrative LawLand LawConstitutional Law

Keywords

offer letter withdrawalnatural justiceadministrative decisionland acquisitionGlebe Farm

Key Issues

{"issue_text":"Whether the respondent's decision to withdraw the offer letter was lawful","issue_type":"administrative","dispositive":"yes","related_facts":"Applicant occupied the land, received offer letter, respondent claimed land didn't exist"}
{"issue_text":"Whether the respondent complied with principles of natural justice","issue_type":"constitutional","dispositive":"yes","related_facts":"Applicant objected to withdrawal but received no response"}

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background

Facts of the Case

Background

The applicant challenged the respondent's decision to withdraw an offer letter for 35 hectares of Glebe Farm in Goromonzi. The applicant had previously settled with the respondent through a deed of settlement registered as an order of the Administrative Court in 2003, retaining 142.38 hectares while relinquishing 526.81 hectares. Despite this, the respondent subdivided the entire farm and allocated portions to other beneficiaries between 2008-2014, leaving the applicant with only 35 hectares. When the applicant applied for and received an offer letter for these remaining 35 hectares in November 2020, the respondent withdrew it in September 2021 claiming the land did not exist.

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