Wakilii

Joseph Nabimanya Shillingi and Others v Commissioner Surveys and Mappings (Miscellaneous Cause No.128 of 2018)

High Court · [2018] UGHCCD 241 · 2018 Application Granted AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Application for judicial review seeking order of mandamus to compel respondent to restore wrongfully resurveyed land
Decision
Order of Mandamus granted compelling respondent to restore deed plan within 30 days

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that where a public officer with statutory duty under section 150 of the Registration of Titles Act wrongfully resurveyed land belonging to estate administrators and subsumed it into another plot without consent, thereby depriving them of their registered interest, and subsequently participated in a resolution to restore the original plot, an order of mandamus will issue compelling the officer to restore the deed plan and reinstate the land to its original status. Public officers can be compelled to perform statutory duties.

Outcome

Order of Mandamus granted compelling respondent to restore deed plan within 30 days

Facts

The applicants are administrators of the estate of the late Odomaro Shillingi, which included land comprised in LRV 1184 Folio 8 Plot 45 Rwampara Block 1 measuring approximately 85.2 hectares, held under a 49-year lease issued in 1982 expiring in 2031. In 2010, the respondent irregularly resurveyed the land at the request of Mugisha Shillingi (brother to the applicants) and wrongly included it within the boundaries of a newly created Plot 252 Rwampara Block 1 measuring approximately 86.889 hectares. The applicants discovered this in 2015. On 2 June 2016, the respondent convened a meeting attended by the applicants, family members, and civic leaders at which it was resolved that the original Plot 45 be secured and reinstated. Despite this resolution and subsequent demands, the respondent failed to implement the decision. As a result, the applicants were unable to conclude a wayleave agreement with Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited for a government project on the land. The respondent did not oppose the application or file any affidavit in reply.

Issues

  1. Whether the respondent has a duty to reinstate/restore the said deed plan?
  2. Whether there is any alternative to the respondent restoring the said deed plan?
  3. Whether the applicant is entitled to the remedies sought?

Orders

  • An Order of Mandamus issued compelling the respondent to restore the applicants' Plot 45 Rwampara Block 1 at Kushebuyege, Kagaga, Rugando measuring approximately 85.2 Hectares by issuing deed plans for the said land to restore its integrity to the applicants.
  • The respondent is directed to effect the necessary changes within 30 days from the date of delivery of this ruling.
  • The applicants should meet their costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Administrative Law — Mandamus — Requirements for Grant
An applicant for an order of mandamus must establish: (a) a clear legal right and corresponding duty on the respondent; (b) that some specific act or thing which the law requires that particular officer to do has been omitted to be done by him; (c) lack of an alternative remedy; or (d) that an alternative remedy exists but is inconvenient, less beneficial or totally ineffective.
Administrative Law — Public Officers — Duty to Perform Statutory Functions
Public officers can be compelled by court order to perform statutory duties as obligated by law.
Land & Property — Surveys and Survey Plans — Exclusive Statutory Authority
Under section 150 of the Registration of Titles Act, only the Commissioner of Surveys and Mapping or a person authorised by him has statutory mandate to prepare deed plans for issuance of certificates of title by the Registrar of Titles, and no plans shall be accepted by the registrar unless authenticated by the Commissioner's signature or someone authorised by him in writing.
Land & Property — Wrongful Resurvey — Duty to Restore
Where the Commissioner of Surveys and Mapping wrongfully resurveys registered land without the consent of the registered interest holders and subsumes it within the boundaries of another plot, thereby rendering the original plot non-existent in official land records, the Commissioner has a duty to reverse the wrongful survey and restore the land to its original status, particularly where the Commissioner has participated in a resolution to restore the land.

Legislation cited (9)

Cases cited (3)

  • John Jet Tumwebaze v Makerere University and 2 Others (High Court Civil Application No. 78 of 2005)
  • Hon Justice Geoffrey Kiryabwire and Others v Attorney General (High Court Miscellaneous Application No. 783 of 2016)
  • David Kato Luguza and Another v Evelyn Nakafeero and Another (High Court Civil Appeal No. 37 of 2011)

Full judgment

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

Joseph Nabimanya Shillingi and Others v Commissioner Surveys and Mappings (Miscellaneous Cause No.128 of 2018) [2018] UGHCCD 241 (16 August 2018)
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.