Wakilii

Engineer Okiror v Ngora District Local Council (Miscellaneous Cause 15 of 2022)

High Court · [2023] UGHCCD 168 · 2023 Application Partly Allowed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for judicial review challenging withdrawal of additional assignment as District Engineer
Decision
Application partly allowed with declaratory relief granted but substantive orders of mandamus, injunction and damages refused

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court held that the application for judicial review was amenable and that the respondent's decision to withdraw the applicant's additional assignment as District Engineer was made with procedural impropriety and irrationality, violating principles of natural justice. However, the court declined to grant mandamus or certiorari as the applicant had only been assigned, not appointed, to the position and merely reverted to his substantive role as Senior Civil Engineer. Damages were also denied as judicial review is not the appropriate forum for such claims.

Outcome

Application partly allowed with declaratory relief granted but substantive orders of mandamus, injunction and damages refused

Facts

The applicant, a Senior Civil Engineer with Ngora District Local Government, was assigned additional duties as District Engineer in April 2014. In June 2022, during a council meeting he attended without formal invitation, the Works Committee Chairperson presented a report alleging mismanagement of road equipment and recommended withdrawal of the applicant's assignment. The applicant was present but not given opportunity to respond. The council adopted the recommendation under Min 60/NCDCM/JUNE/2021/2022. On 28 July 2022, the Chief Administrative Officer wrote withdrawing the additional assignment. The applicant contended he was never accorded a fair hearing before the decision was made and implemented.

Issues

  1. Whether the instant application is amenable to judicial review.
  2. Whether the decisions of the respondent followed the correct procedure and were arrived at in accordance with the law.
  3. Whether the applicant is entitled to the remedies sought.

Orders

  • Declared that the applicant was unprocedurally removed from his acting position as District Engineer.
  • Declared that the decision withdrawing the assignment was illegal, irregular, unlawful, high-handed and unfair for failure to follow legal process and accord fair hearing.
  • Order of mandamus compelling restoration of assignment disallowed.
  • Order of injunction restraining interference with applicant's work disallowed.
  • General damages of UGX 200,000,000 disallowed.
  • Aggravated damages of UGX 50,000,000 disallowed.
  • Costs of the application awarded to the applicant.

Rules and key headnotes

Judicial Review — Amenability — Administrative Decisions by Local Government
A decision by a Chief Administrative Officer of a district local government on recommendation of the district council, exercised in respect of a public officer holding a position in that district, is an administrative decision by a public body amenable to judicial review under Article 42 of the Constitution and Section 36 of the Judicature Act.
Judicial Review — Time Limits — Three Month Requirement
An application for judicial review must be made promptly and in any case within three months from the date when the ground of application arose, unless the court has good reason for extending the period. Where a challenged decision was made in June 2022, communicated by letter dated 28 July 2022, and the application filed on 25 October 2022, the three-month requirement under Section 36(7) of the Judicature Act is satisfied.
Judicial Review — Grounds — Procedural Impropriety and Natural Justice
Where an administrative body makes a decision affecting an individual's rights without according that person an opportunity to be heard or defend themselves against allegations, the decision is tainted with procedural impropriety and violates the cardinal principles of natural justice embodied in 'audi alteram partem' (the right not to be condemned unheard) and 'nemo judex in re causa sua' (no man shall be a judge in his own cause).
Judicial Review — Grounds — Irrationality
Where a decision-making process is devoid of a fair hearing and one side's evidence is not evaluated while being used to assess the truthfulness of the opposite side's evidence, no reasonable tribunal could have acted in such manner and the decision is irrational within the meaning of the Wednesbury unreasonableness test.
Judicial Review — Remedies — Mandamus — Discretionary Appointments
An order of mandamus will not issue to compel restoration of an assignment of duty where the applicant was merely assigned additional responsibilities on a temporary discretionary basis by the Chief Administrative Officer but was never appointed on promotion or probation to the substantive position. A court cannot interfere with discretionary power properly exercised.
Judicial Review — Remedies — Certiorari — Futility
An order of certiorari will not issue to quash an administrative decision, even where procedural impropriety is established, if doing so would be futile because no harm was done to the applicant who merely reverted to his original substantive appointment.
Judicial Review — Remedies — Damages
Damages, whether general or aggravated, cannot be awarded in an application for judicial review brought by way of motion. Claims for damages are appropriately handled by way of civil suit where full evidence of damage and loss can be properly proved and considered.

Legislation cited (13)

Cases cited (12)

  • Ridge v Baldwin [1964] AC 40
  • Kasese District Local Government Council v Bagambe George (Civil Appeal No. 40 of 2016)
  • Lukwago v Attorney General (HCMC No. 281 of 2013)
  • Council of Civil Service Unions v Minister for the Civil Service [1985] AC 374
  • Nsubuga v Kawuma [1978] HCB 307
  • O'Reiley v Mackman [1982] 3 ALL ER 1124
  • Ndangwa Richard v Attorney General (HCMC No. 244 of 2017)
  • Associated Provincial Picture Houses Limited v Wednesbury Corporation [1947] 2 ALL ER 680
  • Hadley v Baxendale (1854) 9 Exch 341
  • Stream Aviation Limited v The Civil Aviation Authority [2008] HCB 156
  • Patrick Kasumba v Attorney General and Treasury Officer of Accounts (HCMA No. 121 of 2010)
  • Grace Namulondo & 3 Others v Jone Jones Sserwanga Ssalongo & 2 Others (MC No. 1 of 2019)

Full judgment

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

Engineer Okiror v Ngora District Local Council (Miscellaneous Cause 15 of 2022) [2023] UGHCCD 168 (3 May 2023)
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.