The Supreme Court yesterday granted the University of Zimbabwe a stay of execution against property that had been attached by the Messenger of Court to cover an arbitration award of US$305 888 in favour of two former workers. Ms Kwanele Muriel Jirira and Mr Louis Masuku had won the arbitration award, which they successfully registered at the High Court.

UZ had initially appealed against the arbitration award at the High Court, but Justice Francis Bere dismissed the application on October 31 2012.

Armed with a writ of execution, the Messenger of Court started attaching the property of the institution last Friday. Property that had been attached included all motor vehicles belonging to UZ, including all buses used to ferry staff. This inconvenienced the staff, who had been stranded since last Friday with most reporting late for work. The Vice-Chancellor's Mercedes-Benz S350 vehicle had also been attached as well as all the books and material in the UZ library. However, the institution's lawyer, Advocate Thabani Mpofu, successfully filed for a stay of execution at the Supreme Court, which was granted yesterday by Justice Vernanda Ziyambi.

Justice Ziyambi ordered that none of the attached property should be removed from the institution and no sale in execution to take place. Advocates Kudzanayi Kadzere and Marufu Mandevere represented Ms Jirira and Mr Masuku.