Wakilii

Uganda Muslim Supreme Council v Namubiru and Another (HCT-01-LD-CV-CS 4 of 2015)

High Court · [2023] UGHCLD 172 · 2023 Judgment for Plaintiff AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
First instance civil suit for declaration of ownership, cancellation of fraudulently obtained titles, and eviction
Decision
Plaintiff's suit succeeded. 1st defendant's titles cancelled and ordered to give vacant possession to plaintiff. Permanent injunction issued against 1st defendant.

Observed later treatment

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Holding

The High Court held that the plaintiff owned the disputed land comprising Kyaka Block 60 plots 5, 40, and 41 at Kyegegwa. The 1st defendant fraudulently obtained certificates of title over plots 40 and 41, which overlapped with the plaintiff's plot 5. The court ordered cancellation of the 1st defendant's titles and their registration in the plaintiff's name, and directed the 1st defendant to give vacant possession. The court rejected expert evidence from a surveyor who lacked a valid practicing certificate under the Surveyors Registration Act.

Outcome

Plaintiff's suit succeeded. 1st defendant's titles cancelled and ordered to give vacant possession to plaintiff. Permanent injunction issued against 1st defendant.

Facts

The plaintiff, Uganda Muslim Supreme Council, claimed ownership of Kyaka Block 60 Plot 5 at Kyegegwa, measuring approximately 11.3 acres, which had been surveyed as native mailo belonging to Kyegegwa Muslim Community since the 1920s. The 1st defendant, Namubiru Mary, obtained certificates of title for two plots (FRV 1083 Folio 4 Kyaka Block 60 plot 40 and FRV 1083 Folio 5 Kyaka Block 60 plot 41) which the plaintiff alleged were carved out of its land. The 1st defendant claimed her family had occupied the land since the 1900s through her grandparents and parents, and that she lawfully converted the land from customary tenure to freehold in 2007. A joint survey by the District Staff Surveyor in March 2021 found that plots 40 and 41 were not traceable on the ground and overlapped with plot 5. The 1st defendant commissioned a private surveyor who concluded the plots did not encroach, but this surveyor lacked a valid practicing certificate.

Issues

  1. Who owns the suit land?
  2. Whether the 1st defendant acquired the certificates of title for the suit land fraudulently
  3. Who of the parties is trespassing on the suit land?
  4. What remedies are available to the parties?

Orders

  • It is declared that the land comprised in Kyaka Block 60 plots 5, 40, and 41 at Kyegegwa belongs to the plaintiff and the 1st defendant fraudulently obtained certificates of title over the same.
  • The 2nd defendant is directed to cancel the 1st defendant's name from the certificates of title for lands comprised in FRV 1083 Folio 4 Kyaka Block 60 plot 40 and FRV 1083 Folio 5 Kyaka Block 60 plot 41 at Kyegegwa and register the same in the plaintiff's name.
  • A permanent injunction is issued against the 1st defendant and anyone claiming under her restraining them from dealing with the suit land except with the consent of the plaintiff.
  • The 1st defendant is directed to give vacant possession of the suit land to the plaintiff.
  • Costs of this suit are awarded to the plaintiff.

Rules and key headnotes

Expert Evidence — Surveyors — Requirement for Valid Practicing Certificate
A surveyor who does not possess a valid practicing certificate as required by section 19(3) of the Surveyors Registration Act Cap 275 has no legal capacity to engage in or carry out the practice of surveying, and any survey report or expert evidence given by such a surveyor must be expunged without inquiry into its merits.
Fraud in Land Transactions — Alteration of Survey Information
Where survey information of an existing plot is altered in the land office to create demarcations for new plots, and the beneficiary of the new titles was the ultimate beneficiary of the process, the acquisition of such titles is fraudulent even if the beneficiary's knowledge of the alteration at the time is unclear, provided the process was within the beneficiary's purview.
Fraud — Bona Fide Acquisition — Defective Will and Succession
A person who acquires title to land through a will that is not properly executed in accordance with section 50 of the Succession Act, or who takes over an application for land conversion commenced by a deceased person without obtaining letters of administration and disregarding the interests of other possible beneficiaries, cannot be considered a bona fide acquirer even if other legal steps in the titling process were followed.
Boundary Disputes — Survey Evidence — Overlapping Plots
Where a boundary opening report by a competent district staff surveyor establishes that the coordinates of certain plots are not traceable on the ground and that those plots overlap with an earlier surveyed plot, the earlier surveyed plot prevails and the overlapping plots are deemed to fall within the already surveyed area.
Registration of Titles Act — Fraud — Void Certificates
Under section 190 of the Registration of Titles Act Cap 230, any certificate of title procured by fraud is void as against all parties or privies to the fraud, and fraud in land transactions must be attributable to the transferee or beneficiary either directly or by implication, including where the beneficiary knew of a fraudulent act by another and participated in it or took advantage of it.

Legislation cited (6)

Cases cited (6)

  • Lancaster Vs Blackwell Colliery Co. Ltd 1982 WC Rep 345
  • Sebuliba Vs Cooperative Bank Ltd (1982) HCB130
  • Kampala Bottlers Ltd v Damanico (U) Ltd (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 22 of 1992)
  • Fredrick J. K Zaabwe v Orient Bank and 5 Others (Supreme Court Civil Appeal No. 4 of 2006)
  • David Sejjaaka v Rebecca Musoke (Civil Appeal No. 12 of 1985)
  • Nsubuga v Mukundane and Another (Court of Appeal Civil Appeal No. 208 of 2018)

Full judgment

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

Uganda_Muslim_Supreme_Council_v_Namubiru_and_Another_(HCT-01-LD-CV-CS_4_of_2015)_[2023]_UGHCLD_172_(31_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.