Background: On October 8, 2020, Equity Bank sold Afrique Suites Hotel on Mutungo Hill to Luwaluwa at $4,350,000 (Shs15.6bn) and Simbamanyo House on Lumumba Avenue to Meera at $5m (Shs18.5bn) after Kamya failed to pay a Shs38b bank debt.
Tycoon peter Kamya, the proprietor of Simbamanyo Estates Limited which formerly owned the Simbamanyo House and other properties in town has suffered a setback yet in the multi-billion property case against three private entities including Meera Investments owned by businessman Sudhir Ruparelia.
The Commercial Court sitting on April 12, 2022, dismissed an application by Kamya’s lawyers that had sought a temporary injunction stopping the sale or transfer of the former Simbamanyo house (Now Gender & Labour House) on Lumumba Avenue and Afrique Suites Hotel in Kampala.
Tycoon Kamya’s lawyers had filed an application seeking to restrain the aforementioned companies from selling, alienating, mortgaging, transferring, encumbering, and creating third-party interests in the two properties.
While dismissing the application, Justice Stephen Mubiru in his April 12 ruling, held that it would not be prudent to temporarily stop Luwaluwa Investment and Meera Investment from selling or transferring Afrique Suits and Simbamanyo house, respectively.
“The applicants’ (Simbamanyo estates and Mr Peter Kamya) need for such protection must be weighed against the corresponding need of two respondents (Luwaluwa Investment and Meera Investment) to be protected against injury resulting from being prevented from exercising their own legal rights, for which they may not be adequately compensated in damages..,” Justice Mubiru held.
“I, therefore, find that the balance of convenience in favour of the respondents (Luwaluwa Investment and Meera Investment). In light of the forgoing, the order, if granted, would inflict greater hardship than it would avoid, hence the balance favours not granting the temporary injunction order. The application is accordingly dismissed,” he ruled.
Justice Mubiru noted that the consideration is that the two properties (Simbamanyo house and Afrique Suits), have since October 8, 2020 or thereabout, been transferred and are in the physical possession of Meera Investment and Luwaluwa Investments, respectively.
Review of taxation costs
In his separate ruling, Justice Mubiru noted that tax costs given to Luwaluwa Investments and Meera Investment were slightly excessive since the cases from which the taxation costs arose did not involve extraordinary complexity.
“I find that the conditions are met in this case and therefore, it is proper that the three bills of costs should be remitted to the taxing officer for taxation. In the final results, the appeal succeeds. The award is set aside, and the three bills of costs are hereby remitted back to the registrar for taxation. Each party is to bear their costs of this appeal,” he added.
The decision to have the taxation costs reviewed followed an application in which Simbamanyo estates and its proprietor, Mr Peter Kamya, were challenging the taxation costs awarded to Equity bank, Meera Investments and Luwaluwa Investments for being manifestly excessive.
The taxation master during taxation of bill of costs, awarded as instruction fees of Shs600m to Equity bank, Shs400m to Meera Investments and Shs300m to Luwaluwa Investments.
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