Justice Dr Ginamia Melody Ngwatu has dismissed with cost the application filed by Roko Construction Company seeking the stay of delivering of the judgement in the Shs1bn suit against them before the Commercial Division of the High Court.
Basing on the affidavit of Mark Koehler the Roko company director, who claimed that Justice Cornelia Sabiiti Kakooza of the Commercial Division of the High Court allowed Mehta Electricals lawyers to proceed ex-parte and the matter was concluded and the presiding judge fixed the judgement date without considering their side also to be heard.
Roko claimed that when the matter came for hearing, their lawyer Nelson Ainebyona was sick visiting a dentist to remove his tooth yet the company’s legal officer Gloria Mutesi who was also conversant with the contents of the case was also away from Kampala.
So, they sent Praise Nuwasasira to hold brief on their side and ask for an adjournment arguing that she was not in possession of the case file and she was not aware of the contents of the case. The presiding judge overruled him and proceeded with the hearing of the matter.
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However, the electronic company lawyers led by Joel Roy Mucunguzi insist that even though Nuwasasira was holding brief, she was given the opportunity to cross examine the last witness who was brought to testify in the matter.
The judge agreed with the electronic company lawyers that Roko lawyers were not serious. They cited a phone conversation which they brought to court as evidence to support their application and a chat between Ainabyona and Gloria which commenced at 9.20am on 11th December, 2024.
“Interestingly it is Gloria who initiated the conversation on the hearing date of the matter that was supposed to take place at 11:30am that morning, but counsel had not bothered to reach out to his client to make the necessary arrangements to ensure that hearing takes place as scheduled and that his witness testify,” the judge stated.
She added that, “As at 9.20am, Counsel for the applicant had already determined, as per the text messages between him and Gloria, that he was going to have a tooth extraction even before the tooth x-ray was taken and dental report written. The applicant’s counsel was present and was aware of court’s direction that both parties should appear at the next hearing with their witnesses.”
The judge agreed with the electronic company lawyers that the application filed by Roko was an attempt to frustrate the determination of the main suit and dismissed it with costs allowing Justice Kakooza to deliver her judgement as planned.
In 2022, the electronic company filed a suit against Roko seeking a court directive to recover Shs1bn unpaid dues for the supply and installation of electrical works and services at five construction sites which were under construction by Roko.
Roko is faces a number of court suits which resulted from failure to execute the agreement they signed with supplier companies and courts have started allowing the auctioning of the company’s properties to recover their moneys.
