Wakilii

Administrator of the Estate of the late Habib Rhemu and 2 Others v Kiyingi and 3 Others (Civil Suit No. 575 of 2002)

High Court · [2021] UGHCLD 181 · 2021 Both Claims Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Counterclaim following striking out of head suit for lack of locus standi
Decision
Both counterclaim and counter defendants' claim dismissed; property reverts to Departed Asians Property Custodian Board

Observed later treatment

Cited — treatment unverified cited in 1 (treatment unverified) Sequitur — Uganda’s citator · Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — not an assertion that this case is good law.

Citator coverage is limited to judgments in the Wakilii corpus and source-matched treatment records. Absence of a signal is not an assertion that the case remains good law.

No adverse treatment recorded Cited 1 time with no adverse treatment recorded; not yet tested on the merits. Derived from citing cases in the Wakilii corpus — a deterministic signal, not legal advice.

AI-generated summary. This summary was generated by AI from the full text of the judgment. It may contain errors or omissions—always read the source judgment before relying on it.

Holding

Held that the Memorandum of Sale dated 16 July 1971 upon which the counterclaimant claimed title was a forgery based on handwriting expert evidence and witness testimony. The counterclaimant and her husband did not lawfully acquire the property. The counter defendants failed to prove they were beneficiaries of the deceased registered proprietors, their NIRA records showing different parentage. Neither party having valid interest, the property was declared abandoned departed Asian property reverting to the Departed Asians Property Custodian Board under the Expropriated Properties Act 1982.

Outcome

Both counterclaim and counter defendants' claim dismissed; property reverts to Departed Asians Property Custodian Board

Facts

Easter Kiyingi's husband Samuel Muleme claimed to have purchased land comprised in LRV 118 Folio 8, Plot 2 Fort Road, Old Kampala from three Asian proprietors via Memorandum of Sale dated 16 July 1971 before their expulsion in 1972. He paid balance to the Departed Asians Property Custodian Board in 1976, obtained transfer, and later transferred to his wife in 1977. Louis Bachu and two others claimed to be beneficiaries of the deceased former proprietors and sought restoration of the property. The original head suit had been struck out for lack of locus standi, leaving only the counterclaim. Forensic handwriting analysis conducted in 1996 and 2010 established that signatures on the 1971 Memorandum of Sale were forgeries. NIRA records showed the counter defendants were children of different fathers than the deceased proprietors they claimed as parents.

Issues

  1. Whether the counterclaimant and Mr. Muleme Samuel lawfully acquired the suit property.
  2. Whether the 1st, 2nd and 3rd counter defendants have any interest in the suit property.
  3. What remedies are available to the parties.

Orders

  • The counterclaimant Easter Kiyingi and her husband Muleme Samuel acquired the suit property fraudulently and their claim is dismissed.
  • The 1st, 2nd and 3rd counter defendants do not have any interest in the suit property and their claim is dismissed.
  • The property is declared departed Asian abandoned property within the meaning of Section 2(2)(b) of the Expropriated Properties Act 1983 and Regulations 6 and 8 of the Expropriated Properties (Repossession and Disposal) Regulations S.I No. 87-8.
  • The suit property reverts to Departed Asians Property Custodian Board for management under the Expropriation Laws and Regulations.
  • The Deputy Registrar to immediately serve this judgment upon the Executive Director of Departed Asians Property Custodian Board for execution by way of demand for vacant possession or eviction.
  • Each party to bear their own costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Evidence — Expert Evidence — Handwriting Analysis — Weight to be Attached
The duty of an expert witness is to furnish the judge with the necessary scientific criteria for testing the accuracy of their conclusions so as to enable the judge to form an independent judgment by applying these criteria to the facts proved in evidence.
Evidence — Burden of Proof — Civil Cases — Standard of Proof
Under Sections 101-103 of the Evidence Act, the burden is on a party to prove the facts constituting their claim to obtain judgment in their favour on a balance of probabilities.
Land & Property — Registration — Forgery — Effect on Title
Where a Memorandum of Sale forming the root of title is established to be a forgery, there is no valid sale transaction and any subsequent transfers based on that forged instrument confer no lawful title.
Land & Property — Cancellation of Certificate of Title — Powers of Commissioner
The Commissioner Land Registration has no power, without a court order, to cancel a Certificate of Title on grounds of fraud.
Administrative Law — Expropriated Properties — Departed Asians — Definition of Abandoned Property
Property purportedly sold by departed Asians under a forged Memorandum of Sale before expulsion remains abandoned property within the meaning of the Expropriated Properties Act 1982 and falls under the jurisdiction of the Departed Asians Property Custodian Board.
Evidence — Documentary Evidence — National Identification Records — Probative Value
In the absence of rebuttal evidence, official NIRA records indicating parentage as declared by applicants are credible evidence of identity and family relationships.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (3)

  • George W Kakoma v Attorney General [2010] HCB Vol 1 78
  • Davie v Edinburgh Magistrates (1953) SC 34
  • Hilda Namusoke and 3 Others v Owalla's Home Investment Trust (EA) Ltd (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 15 of 2017)

Cases citing this judgment (1)

How later Ugandan judgments in the Wakilii corpus have cited this case. Treatment labels come from Sequitur — Uganda’s citator — each backed by a verbatim span from the citing judgment, and are not an assertion that this case is, or is not, good law.

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Administrator_of_the_Estate_of_the_late_Habib_Rhemu_and_2_Others_v_Kiyingi_and_3_Others_(Civil_Suit_No._575_of_2002)_[2021]_UGHCLD_181_(7_December_2021)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.