What the Wicknell-Sugar Sugar controversy teaches us: a gift may not actually be legally yours

Tendai Ruben Mbofana

The ongoing drama surrounding sungura musician Sugar Sugar and the Toyota Fortuner handed to him by the late tenderpreneur Wicknell Chivayo has gripped the Zimbabwean public.

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The hitmaker revealed that he does not hold the registration book for the vehicle and claimed he was asked to return it because the purchase price was never settled with the supplying dealership.

While car dealers involved have clarified the state of affairs regarding unpaid debts left behind as Chivayo’s estate is finalised, the situation exposes a sobering reality.

Many people who receive lavish presents operate under the dangerous assumption that physical possession automatically equals legal ownership.

Under Roman-Dutch common law, a gift is legally classified as a donation.

While anyone is free to give away property, the law strictly enforces the principle of nemo dat quod non habet, meaning no one can transfer a better title to property than they themselves hold.

If a donor acquired a car, house, or land on credit, under an installment plan, or through a contract with a reservation of ownership clause, the seller retains title until the final cent is paid.

A donor who does not fully own an asset cannot legally give it away.

Furthermore, when a donor passes away or faces insolvency, creditors are protected under insolvency law.

Transactions involving unpaid liabilities or gifts made when a donor was accumulating massive debts can be reviewed or set aside by executors and liquidators to satisfy outstanding obligations.

This brings us to a fundamental question that affects many recipients of high-value gifts.

Without formal proof of ownership, can an asset like a car or a house be considered legally yours?

The plain answer is no.

Merely holding the keys, driving a car, or living inside a house does not confer civil title.

In Zimbabwe, even a motor vehicle registration book carries a explicit disclaimer stating that it is an administrative document rather than absolute proof of legal ownership.

Being named on the logbook establishes accountability for traffic licensing and police checks, but it does not override civil property rights.

For real estate, the law under the Deeds Registries Act is even more uncompromising, as legal ownership of immovable property transfers strictly upon formal registration of a Title Deed at the Deeds Registry.

Until that document is endorsed in your name, the house legally belongs to the registered titleholder or their estate, regardless of any verbal assurances or ceremonial handovers.

To make a gift legally unassailable and protect it from repossession, debt recovery, or to ensure you can lawfully sell it, the transaction must undergo formal perfection.

For a motor vehicle, this requires a clear paper trail showing full financial settlement from the seller, a written contract of donation, ZRP clearance, and the completion of official Central Vehicle Registry transfer procedures.

For houses, it requires conveyancing by a registered legal practitioner, payment of Capital Gains Tax to secure a ZIMRA clearance certificate, local authority rates clearances, and the issuance of a new Title Deed.

For exceptionally valuable gifts, executing a Notarial Deed of Donation registered with the Deeds Office provides public legal proof that a genuine, irrevocable gift was completed while the donor was solvent.

This Sugar Sugar controversy carries lessons that extend far beyond public figures or high-profile tenderpreneurs.

We see similar informal gifting in intimate relationships, where spouses, lovers, or romantic partners present each other with cars, land, or residential properties.

Partners frequently accept these gifts without demanding proper legal paperwork out of trust or fear of appearing ungrateful.

The dangers of doing so are severe.

If a relationship sours, the partner who retained the title deed or ownership documentation in their own name or company name can simply repossess the vehicle or evict the other.

If the gifting partner unexpectedly passes away, their surviving family or estate executors will act strictly according to the law.

Informal gifts lacking updated ownership documentation or deeds will be treated as part of the deceased person’s estate and reclaimed to pay off debts or distribute to legal heirs.

Additionally, if a partner incurs commercial liabilities or tax arrears, court sheriffs can attach and auction assets registered in their name, even if a lover has been driving or living there for years.

To protect ourselves, we must approach high-value gifts with legal clarity rather than sentimentality.

Never rely on promises that papers will be updated later, and demand immediate formal transfer of the logbook or Title Deed into your personal name.

Before accepting major assets, confirm that the purchase was fully settled and free from bank floorplan liens or corporate encumbrances.

For relationships outside of formal marriage, partners should execute a signed, written Agreement of Gift drafted by a legal practitioner.

In civil marriages, structuring asset ownership through clear marital property contracts prevents personal gifts from being consumed by a spouse’s business debts.

Where you contribute financially toward a gifted asset, keep thorough records of bank transfers and receipts to preserve your legal claim.

A gift wrapped in ceremony but stripped of legal paperwork is not a blessing.

But a borrowed luxury waiting to be reclaimed.

• *Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice advocate and writer. Please feel free to contact him on +263715667700 or *

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