Mbabane– The High Court has ordered businessman Sabelo J. Simelane to vacate a disputed portion of Farm 1031 at Motshane and demolish a newly constructed building within 30 days after finding that Enduma Development Corporation (Pty) Ltd holds a valid registered right over the property.
In a judgment delivered on July 14, Justice B.W. Magagula dismissed all five preliminary objections raised by Simelane before ruling in favour of Enduma Development Corporation. The court confirmed an interim order granted in June and authorised the company to demolish the structure itself and recover the costs should Simelane fail to comply within the stipulated period. Each party was ordered to pay its own legal costs.
The dispute centred on ongoing construction by Simelane on land covered by a registered notarial lease held by Enduma Development Corporation over Farm 1031 in the Hhohho District. The company approached the court on an urgent basis seeking to stop the construction, remove Simelane from the property and compel him to demolish the building.
Before the court considered the merits of the case, Simelane challenged the proceedings on five grounds. He argued that the High Court lacked jurisdiction because the land was Swazi Nation Land, that the company was stopped from seeking relief after years of inaction, that the application was not urgent, that it had been brought prematurely and that factual disputes could not be resolved on affidavit.
Justice Magagula rejected each of those arguments.
On jurisdiction, the judge found that the land in dispute is subject to a registered notarial lease and is not Swazi Nation Land under the control of traditional authorities. He held that the High Court has original jurisdiction to determine disputes involving registered real rights over such property.
The court also dismissed Simelane’s argument that the company had waited too long to act. The judgment states that Enduma Development Corporation became aware of the new construction on 28 May 2026, attempted to engage Simelane and approached the court soon afterwards. Justice Magagula held that the urgency arose from the ongoing construction, which could have rendered any future court order ineffective if the building had been completed.
When considering the merits, the court found that Enduma Development Corporation’s registered notarial lease created a real right enforceable against all parties. It further found that survey evidence showed the disputed construction falls within Farm 1031 and that Simelane failed to produce sufficient evidence to establish a superior right to occupy the land.
The judgment also found that although the Simelane family has lived in the Motshane area since 1960, the evidence before the court did not establish continuous occupation of the specific portion of land now in dispute. Instead, documentary evidence supported the company’s account that the site had previously been allocated to another occupier before eventually being allocated to Enduma Development Corporation.
Justice Magagula said any claim that the Surveyor-General’s diagram incorrectly included the old Enduma Motors site should be pursued through separate proceedings to amend the survey records and title documents, and could not defeat the company’s registered right in the present application.
Although Enduma Development Corporation succeeded in obtaining the relief it sought, the court declined to award attorney-and-client costs after finding that the company’s founding papers contained an incorrect allegation relating to government compensation for different property. The judge held that this made it inappropriate to grant a punitive costs order, directing instead that each party bear its own costs.
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