ELITE PRIVATE ACADEMY FACES COLLAPSE AFTER HIGH COURT ORDERS IT TO PAY ITS US$303K DEBT OR LOSE ITS PROPERTIES

Fidelis MunyoroChief Court ReporterKNOWSTICS Academy, once a beacon of elite private education in this country, now faces financial ruin and asset seizure.This follows a High Court ruling against the institution in a crushing summary judgment in a case involving over US$300,000 in unpaid loans.The ruling grants BancABC full summary judgment, ordering immediate payment of US$303,258.14 and ZWG2,715.56, plus interest, and declares the school’s immovable and movable properties – including land in Inyanga and Umtali, science lab equipment, and a centre-pivot sprinkler system – executable.Despite initially repaying portions of the debt in US dollars, the school later defaulted, offering excuses, including an armed robbery in July 2023, which it claimed hindered its ability to pay.Justice Faith Mushure declared the defences put forward by the school’s owners as “implausible, insincere and disingenuous,” and emblematic of a culture of debt avoidance that “does not bode well for business and investment in this country.”The judgment, handed down last week, lays bare the unravelling of an institution that promised academic excellence but buckled under financial mismanagement and alleged attempts to sidestep repayment obligations to BancABC.“Some people simply will not settle a debt,” Justice Mushure wrote, quoting a prior ruling.“No matter how many times the creditor runs around the walls of Jericho the walls remain unshakeable.“It is just in their nature that they incur a debt which they have no intention whatsoever of paying back.”The court found that Knowstics Academy, operated by Willedit Investments (Pvt) Ltd under directors William and Edith Mukuwapasi, had entered into two loan agreements with BancABC – one for US$467,500 in 2022 and another for ZWG11 million in 2019 – both secured against the school’s properties and equipment, including laboratory apparatus and irrigation systems.The defendants then argued the debt should be repaid in local currency, not United States dollars, because the bank had disbursed the funds in Zimbabwean dollars.But the court firmly rejected this reasoning, pointing to signed agreements and a May 2025 letter from the school’s CEO acknowledging the debt in United States dollars and even requesting further restructuring.“The defendants cannot argue that the plaintiff is seeking to be unjustly enriched,” Justice Mushure ruled, “in circumstances where the first defendant entered into the loan agreement with its eyes fully open.“Only when the first defendant started facing challenges in repaying the loan, did the defendants start questioning the terms of the agreement.” Once a symbol of prestige, the school now serves as a case study in financial overreach and contractual accountability.“It would be remiss to refuse summary judgment,” the judge concluded, “where there are no real issues for the trial court to decide on simply because a defendant considers… that it wants a day in court.”No comment was immediately available from the Mukuwapasis or their legal representatives as the educational empire they built now teeters on the edge of collapse. KNOWSTICS Academy, once a beacon of elite private education in this country, now faces financial ruin and asset seizure. This follows a High Court ruling against the institution in a crushing summary judgment in a case involving over US$300,000 in unpaid loans.

The ruling grants BancABC full summary judgment, ordering immediate payment of US$303,258.14 and ZWG2,715.56, plus interest, and declares the school’s immovable and movable properties – including land in Inyanga and Umtali, science lab equipment, and a centre-pivot sprinkler system – executable. Despite initially repaying portions of the debt in US dollars, the school later defaulted, offering excuses, including an armed robbery in July 2023, which it claimed hindered its ability to pay. Justice Faith Mushure declared the defences put forward by the school’s owners as “implausible, insincere and disingenuous,” and emblematic of a culture of debt avoidance that “does not bode well for business and investment in this country.” The judgment, handed down last week, lays bare the unravelling of an institution that promised academic excellence but buckled under financial mismanagement and alleged attempts to sidestep repayment obligations to BancABC.

“Some people simply will not settle a debt,” Justice Mushure wrote, quoting a prior ruling. “No matter how many times the creditor runs around the walls of Jericho the walls remain unshakeable. “It is just in their nature that they incur a debt which they have no intention whatsoever of paying back.” The court found that Knowstics Academy, operated by Willedit Investments (Pvt) Ltd under directors William and Edith Mukuwapasi, had entered into two loan agreements with BancABC – one for US$467,500 in 2022 and another for ZWG11 million in 2019 – both secured against the school’s properties and equipment, including laboratory apparatus and irrigation systems.

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The defendants then argued the debt should be repaid in local currency, not United States dollars, because the bank had disbursed the funds in Zimbabwean dollars. But the court firmly rejected this reasoning, pointing to signed agreements and a May 2025 letter from the school’s CEO acknowledging the debt in United States dollars and even requesting further restructuring. “The defendants cannot argue that the plaintiff is seeking to be unjustly enriched,” Justice Mushure ruled, “in circumstances where the first defendant entered into the loan agreement with its eyes fully open.

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