The Sunday News
Vusumuzi Dube, Senior Municipal Reporter
THE Bulawayo City Council (BCC) has started selling off stands that they repossessed after the owners failed to develop them, for a long period of time.
Last year the local authority repossessed an initial 179 stands in Cowdray Park, Entumbane and Pumula after some of the the owners went for up to 22 years without making any meaningful development of their stands after having been allocated in 1998.
In a statement, the city’s town clerk, Mr Christopher Dube on Wednesday revealed that on Friday they will be selling 17 stands of those that were repossessed on a first come first serve basis.
“Notice is hereby given that the Bulawayo City Council will be allocating a limited number of repossessed residential stands (17) on a first come, first served basis to applicants on the council waiting list on Friday, 12 March 2021.
“Only applicants with full purchase price in will be considered. The average stand prices are US$4 000 or ZWL equivalent for a 200 square metre stand sizes,” said Mr Dube.
A couple of years ago the local authority gave 1 009 property owners that had abandoned their assets or negated to pay rates and develop their stands a final 30-day notice before the local authority repossesses and auctions them.
In 2014 the local authority had initially flighted advertisements exposing over 2 000 properties which the owners had not only abandoned but were not paying their obligated rates and rentals.
BCC has the authority to repossess these properties as guided by the Titles registration and derelict lands Act (chapter 20:20).
The Act states that; “Persons having claim on derelict land may apply to High Court or other public body upon immovable property in Zimbabwe and such property is abandoned, deserted derelict, and the owner thereof cannot be found, it shall be lawful for the person or body claiming such rate or assessment to apply to the High Court, stating the amount claimed to be due and the grounds applying for relief under this Act.”
