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Judgment No. SC 33/18
Civil Appeal No. SC 780/17
that he who alleges must prove is a basic concept of our law. No evidence was adduced by
the second respondent to substantiate the alleged inauthenticity of the agreements.
The appellants produced documents which show that the assets had been
purchased by them and initially belonged to them. They also produced the agreements
concluded with Mbada Mine in 2012 and 2015 which show that ownership was reserved
in favour of the appellants until the full purchase price was paid. The relevant provisions
are contained in clauses 4.3 and 11.6 of the first appellant’s agreement and clause 7.7 of
the second appellant’s agreement.
The second respondent alleged that the documents supporting the appellants’
claims were a recent fabrication meant to frustrate the execution of the assets, but the dates
when the agreements were concluded reveal that they were executed well before the second
respondent instituted any legal proceedings in this matter. There is also nothing in the
record to give credence to the allegations that the documents were fabricated by the
appellants in collusion with Mbada Mine. It is my view, therefore, in the absence of any
evidence to the contrary, that the agreements are genuine and that their provisions and the
agreed compacts contained therein must be accepted as being authentic, as well as
commercially and legally cognisable.
Disposition
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