Elderly siblings fall out over late mother’s land
The inheritance of land left to them by their late parents has landed three elderly siblings before Maun Customary Court as they accuse each other of cheating to meet their own selfish ends.
Dragging his brother and sister before the tribal authority, 50-year-old Johnfan Molapo accused Matsaawe Molapo, 60, and Keesi Molapo, 53, of preventing him from changing his inherited residential plot into his name.
Johnfan told court he applied for the land to be changed into his names last year, but his siblings approached the landboard behind his back and blocked his application.
“I was given the plot as part of my inheritance. Following a family meeting we agreed that the plot will be changed into my names. They gave me a go ahead to apply for change of names,” maintained the younger Molapo, determinedly avoid eye-contact with his listening relatives.
Johnfan further insisted this was not the first time his siblings had interfered in his inheritance, claiming they had pulled a similar move involving cows.
“Even the cattle that was given to me became a subject of court proceedings. They gave me a cow and from there they approached court and accused me of wrongfully branding them,” grumbled the complainant.
Giving a slightly different version of the family feud, Matsaawe explained the plot in question was in fact a shared property to be divided equally between the three of them.
Matsaawe revealed their late mother had two residential plots – one was given to two other siblings while the second was passed on to the trio before court.
Although he admitted they allowed Johnfan to change the deeds into his name, Matsaawe told court there was a simple explanation for this.
“Following the distribution of the estate, Johnfan came with a landboard form and told us that the landboard has advised that we change the plot into a single person’s names to protect it. He said the two others can only sign for him, of which we did.”
However, Matsaawe and his sister grew suspicious when Johnfan started bringing different people, some ‘in big cars’, to view the plot.
“One of them happened to know our family and approached to enquire more about the sale of the plot. We then realised he was planning to sell the plot and had lied about its ownership and that is when we blocked his application. The landboard even told us that there is provision for joint application of which a shared property cannot be sold without consent of co-owners,” continued Matsaawe, who described his younger brother as ‘a difficult sibling’.
“For the distribution of cows to end in court, Johnfan was given his share, but went ahead and branded a cow that was given to his sister because he said he was given the thinnest cow,” said Matsaawe, causing wry chuckles in the court.
The matter is set to return before Kgosi Leretsetse Mogalakwe this week after he views the plot in question.