Wakilii

Church of Nazarene v Kibadawo Mark Wambuzi and Another (Civil Appeal 69 of 2022)

High Court · [2026] UGHC 116 · 2026 Appeal Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Civil appeal from Chief Magistrate's Court decision dismissing suit for recovery of land and trespass damages
Decision
Respondents' freehold titles cancelled; vacant possession granted to appellant church

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court allowed the appeal, finding that the first respondent, a pastor and church leader, fraudulently obtained freehold titles to land originally purchased by the appellant church. The respondent abused his position of trust by destroying the church's original sale agreements and manipulating the vendor into executing fresh agreements in his own name under the pretext of establishing a school. The court ordered cancellation of the respondents' titles and granted vacant possession to the church.

Outcome

Respondents' freehold titles cancelled; vacant possession granted to appellant church

Facts

The appellant church purchased land in two portions in 1998 and 1999 from Captain Israel James Mudoola, executing sale agreements for each transaction. The first respondent, Kibadawo Mark Wambuzi, served as the church's District Superintendent and had access to the church's land documents. In 2006, he allegedly destroyed the original sale agreements and manipulated the vendor into executing fresh agreements in his own name and that of the second respondent, his wife, under the pretext of establishing a school to serve the church community. Using these new agreements, the respondents converted the land from customary to freehold tenure and obtained registered titles. The church sued for recovery of the land, alleging fraud. The Chief Magistrate dismissed the suit, finding in favour of the respondents as registered proprietors. The church appealed.

Issues

  1. Whether the respondents fraudulently acquired freehold titles over the suit land thereby defeating the unregistered interest of the appellant church.
  2. Whether the suit land is owned by the appellant church.
  3. Whether the trial magistrate properly evaluated the evidence on record.

Orders

  • Appeal allowed with costs in this court and the court below.
  • An order for the cancellation of freehold certificates of title for land described as Freehold Register Volume 564 Folio 18 Bunya Block 13 Plot 111 at Ntinkalu measuring 0.991 hectares.
  • An order for the cancellation of freehold certificates of title for land described as Freehold Register Volume 638 Folio 7 Bunya Block 13 Plot 80 at Ntinkalu, Musoli, Baitambogwe, Mayuge District in the names of Kibadawo Mark Wambuzi and Abeja Margaret Kibadawo.
  • An order of vacant possession evicting the respondents from the suit land is hereby granted.

Rules and key headnotes

Land & Property — Fraud — Impeachment of Certificate of Title — Abuse of Fiduciary Position
A registered certificate of title may be impeached on grounds of fraud under section 64(1) of the Registration of Titles Act where a person in a position of trust and authority within an organisation uses that position to destroy the organisation's original land documents, manipulate the vendor into executing fresh agreements in his own name, and obtain registered titles with the deliberate intention of defeating the organisation's unregistered interest.
Land & Property — Fraud — Standard of Proof — Fiduciary Duty
Where a pastor and church leader owes a fiduciary duty to act honestly in managing church affairs, his fraudulent conversion of church land to freehold in his own name instead of converting the unregistered interest to leasehold in the church's name constitutes a breach of fiduciary duty and fraud sufficient to impeach registered title.
Evidence — Corroboration — Credibility of Witnesses
Where a witness's testimony regarding the execution of land sale agreements is consistent, truthful, and corroborated by other credible witnesses, and is supported by documentary evidence such as meeting minutes showing the respondent's position of trust, the court is entitled to accept that testimony as proof of fraud.
Civil Procedure — Grounds of Appeal — Specificity Requirement
A ground of appeal that is general in nature and does not point out the specific error or procedure that the trial court failed to follow offends Order 43 Rule 1(2) of the Civil Procedure Rules and will be struck out. A ground of appeal must challenge a holding or ratio decidendi and must specify the points which were wrongly decided.

Legislation cited (3)

Cases cited (5)

  • Sanyu Lwanga Musoke v Galiwango (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 48 of 1995)
  • Kifamunte Henry v Uganda (Supreme Court Criminal Appeal No. 10 of 1997)
  • National Insurance Corporation v Pelican Services (Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 5 of 2003)
  • Sietco v Noble Builders (U) Ltd (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 31 of 1995)
  • Fredrick Zaabwe v Orient Bank and Others (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 4 of 2006)

Full judgment

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

Church of Nazarene v Kibadawo Mark Wambuzi and Another (Civil Appeal 69 of 2022) [2026] UGHC 116 (12 January 2026)
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.