Wakilii

IGG v Gordon Sentiba & 3 Ors (Misc. Appl. No. 65 of 2007) (Misc. Appl. No. 65 of 2007)

High Court · [2007] UGHC 34 · 2007 Preliminary Objection Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application to review and set aside consent judgment arising from representative suit for compensation of non-government shareholders
Decision
Preliminary objections dismissed; matter to proceed to substantive hearing

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The High Court held that the Inspectorate of Government has locus standi to apply for review of a consent judgment where it alleges corruption and potential future loss to Government, as it is not barred by section 19 of the Inspectorate of Government Act from moving court to review its own decision. The court found the Inspectorate is independent of the Attorney General and can pursue matters independently. Preliminary objections challenging the application's competence were dismissed.

Outcome

Preliminary objections dismissed; matter to proceed to substantive hearing

Facts

Nyanza Textiles Industries Limited (NYTIL) was nationalised by Government in 1973, with 1% shares held by non-government shareholders. In 1995, NYTIL was privatised to Picfare Industries for US$10 million, including US$3 million for non-government shareholders secured by a redeemable preference share guaranteed by National Insurance Corporation. Picfare went into receivership before completing payment. Government later wrote off the unpaid purchase price for UGX 1000 without collecting from the guarantor, leaving non-government shareholders unpaid. Gordon Sentiba and others filed a representative suit (HCCS No. 431 of 2006) seeking compensation. After the Attorney General's Chambers convened a stakeholder meeting to discuss settlement, a consent judgment was entered on 29 December 2006 without approval from the Ministry of Finance. The Minister of Finance complained to the Inspectorate of Government, which then applied to review and set aside the consent judgment on grounds that the first respondents did not represent all entitled shareholders and that irregularities would cause irreparable loss to Government.

Issues

  1. Whether section 19(1)(a) and (c) of the Inspectorate of Government Act bars the Inspectorate from moving court to review a consent judgment.
  2. Whether the Inspectorate of Government has locus standi to apply for review of a consent judgment to which it is not a party.
  3. Whether the Inspectorate can pursue matters independent of the Attorney General despite Article 119 of the Constitution.
  4. Whether the affidavits supporting the application are fatally defective.

Orders

  • Preliminary objections to the application overruled.
  • Substantive application to be heard and decided on its own merits.
  • Costs of the preliminary objection awarded to the applicant.

Rules and key headnotes

Administrative Law — Inspectorate of Government — Powers and Jurisdiction — Limitation on Reviewing Court Decisions
Section 19(1)(a) and (c) of the Inspectorate of Government Act, which bars the Inspectorate from questioning or reviewing any decision of a court of law or any civil matter before court at commencement of investigations, does not prevent the Inspectorate from moving court to request that the court itself review its own decision. In such cases, it is the court, not the Inspectorate, that conducts the review based on evidence adduced.
Administrative Law — Inspectorate of Government — Capacity to Sue and Be Sued — Independence from Attorney General
The Inspectorate of Government, being an independent constitutional body created under Chapter 13 of the 1995 Constitution, has capacity to sue and be sued and may pursue and defend its decisions independent of the Attorney General, notwithstanding Article 119 of the Constitution, particularly where preserving its independence requires disregarding the Attorney General's advice or where the conduct of the Attorney General's officers is itself in issue.
Civil Procedure — Locus Standi — Review and Setting Aside Consent Judgments — Non-Parties
Order 9 Rule 12 of the Civil Procedure Rules, which empowers court to set aside judgments entered by the Registrar, is not restricted to parties to the suit but extends to any person who has a direct interest in the matter and has been injuriously affected. The Inspectorate of Government has locus standi to apply for review of a consent judgment where it alleges corruption and possible future loss to Government, as eliminating corruption is its constitutional and statutory duty.
Constitutional Law — Independent Constitutional Bodies — Relationship with Attorney General — Article 119
Independent state bodies created under the 1995 Constitution, such as the Inspectorate of Government, may pursue matters independent of the Attorney General in order to preserve their independence, although where the Attorney General has given a legal opinion as Government Advisor, such opinion should be accorded due respect particularly where third parties have acted upon it.
Civil Procedure — Affidavits — Defects in Jurat — Omission of Place Where Oath Administered
Where the jurat of an affidavit omits to state the place where the oath was administered as required by section 6 of the Oaths Act, but the place can be inferred from the body of the affidavit and no penalty is provided for non-compliance, the omission is not fatal and is cured particularly where other compliant affidavits by the same deponent are on record and no miscarriage of justice results. Courts are enjoined to administer substantive justice without undue regard to technicalities under Article 126(2)(e) of the Constitution.

Legislation cited (23)

Cases cited (10)

  • Inspector General of Government v Kikonda Butema Farm Ltd and Attorney General (Constitutional Application No. 13 of 2006)
  • Kabagambe Asol & 2 Others v Electoral Commission & Dr. Kiiza Besigye (Constitutional Petition No. 1 of 2006)
  • Bank of Uganda v Banco Arabe Espanol (Civil Appeal No. 1 of 2001)
  • Ladak Abdullah Mohamed Hussein versus Griffiths Isingoma Kakiiza & 2 others
  • Ladak Abdulla Mohamed Hussein v Griffiths Isingoma Kakiiza & 2 Others (Civil Appeal No. 8 of 1995)
  • Mbogo v Shah [1968] EA 93
  • Jacques v Harrison (1883-4) 12 AC 165
  • Employers Liability Assurance Corporation Ltd v Sedgwick Collins and Company Ltd [1927] AC 95
  • Yusuf v Nokrach [1971] EA 104
  • In Re Nakivubo Chemists (U) Ltd [1971] HCB 12

Full judgment

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IGG v Gordon Sentiba & 3 Ors (Misc. Appl. No. 65 of 2007) (Misc. Appl. No. 65 of 2007) [2007] UGHC 34 (15 March 2007)
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.