Mwana Lubaba Mining Company Limited has sued the State and a miner in the Lusaka High Court seeking a declaration that it is the equitable owner of a plot in Kalomo District having been physically shown the land back in 2004.

The mining company is also seeking an injunction to restrain the said miner from carrying out any activity on its plot until the matter is determined.

It has sued Ronald Kawaya, a miner, as first defendant and the Attorney General, sued on behalf of the Ministry of Mines, as second defendant.

In a statement of claim filed in the Lusaka High Court, the mining company stated that Kawaya was a miner based in Kalomo.

It stated that in 2004, it applied for a plot in Kalomo, and was shown by plot SP 105 by Ministry of Mines surveyors.

The company stated that its director accepted the plot on behalf of the company, adding that it had been mining on the plot since and had invested about K1,222,000.

It claimed that on regular basis, the Ministry of Mines surveyors had been touring and inspecting mining plots in Kalomo, including Plot SP105.

Mwana Lubaba Mine added that in all those visits undertaken by surveyors in the last 15 years, none of the surveyors or anybody had raised any query about its presence on the same plot.

“In fact, Kawaya has for a long time been doing business with the company, bringing stones to the company for sale and coming to the same plot for transactions. Kawaya knew that the mining company was physically shown the plot way back in 2004 and that the Ministry of Mines through their surveyors make regular visits to the mining plots in Kalomo,” read the statement of claim.

The mining company wondered how the Ministry of Mines could offer the plot in question to Kawaya when they knew that it was occupied by the company.

Mwana Lubaba Mine is now seeking a declaration that it was the equitable owner of the plot, an injunction restraining Kawaya whether by himself, his agents, or servants from carrying out any activity on the plot until the determination of the matter, damages, costs and any other relief.