Africa-Press – Tanzania. THE High Court’s Commercial Division has ordered Dar es Salaam Police Special Zone Commander to arrest seven shareholders with Karagwe Estate Limited for failure to honour the contract.
The company failed to pay 600,027.21 US dollars (about 1.4bn/-) and 4,822.27 British Pounds (about 15.6m/-) to Touton SA in a coffee contract business.
According to the arrest warrant issued in execution of the court’s decree, the officials to be arrested are Eustace Katagira, Fortunatus Faustine, Sebba Bilakwate, Severine Katabaro, Fulgens Katagira, Rugaimukamu Kalegeya and William Kategaya, who are described as judgment debtors.
“These are to command you to arrest the said judgment debtors unless (they) shall pay to you the said 600,027.21 US dollars and 4,822.27 British Pounds and the cost of executing the process to bring (them) before the court with all convenient speed,” reads part of the arrest warrant.
The court further commanded the Zonal Police Chief to return the warrant on June 22, 2021, with an endorsement certifying the day on which and how it has been executed or the reason why it has not been executed.
Such development comes following a dispute that arose between Karagwe Estate Limited, a leading coffee Buyer in Kagera region and Touton SA, the French Registered leading agro-industrial actor, over alleged breach of contract on supply of several metric tons of coffee.
Such dispute was forwarded to the London based Commercial Dispute Resolution Tribunal, which issued an Award in favour of Touton SA, requiring Karagwe Estate Limited to pay such amount.
Touton SA, thereafter, filed an application before the Tanzanian Court for registration of the Award in question.
Judge Patricia Fikirini granted the application, a result of which made the Ward form part of the court decree dated July 28, 2020.
It was then when the court ordered the judgment debtors to satisfy the decree in question by paying to Touton SA the decretal amount.
The dispute between the parties arose in respect of two million US dollars prefinancing and no-delivery of contracted coffee in repayment was referred to arbitration by Touton AS, Claimant, and registered by the British Coffee Association on September 13, 2019, against Karagwe Estate Limited, the Respondent.
In the Arbitration Award, members of the panel of Arbitrators comprising Simon Wakefield, Thomas Blackwall and Agnieszka Krasuska found the pre-finance was made by Claimant to the Respondent to buy coffee and several agreed and confirmed dates of deliveries have not been met by the Respondent.
According to the Arbitrators, the Claimant undertook different steps to find a possible solution and fulfill its contractual obligation and extended on several occasions its goodwill to accommodate the Respondent, but the latter could not fulfill his obligations to deliver the coffee on time.
They concluded to award the Claimant a total of 178,406.21 US dollars for several damage costs and that both parties had agreed that coffee valued at 1,578,379.40 US dollars was delivered in part fulfillment of the 2 million US dollars pre-finance, thus leaving a balance of 421,621 US dollars.
The Arbitrators, therefore, ordered that the principal damages of 178,406.21 US dollars be paid by Karagwe Estate Limited to Touton SA plus the agreed final balance of the pre-financing of 421,621 US dollars plus accruing interest on the balance pre-financing at 14 per cent from September 5, 2019.
They further awarded costs of the arbitration of 3,858 British Pounds as fees and expenses of the Tribunal and other 964.27 British Pounds as fees and expenses of the British Coffee Association of registration, thus, making a total of 4,822.27 British Pounds.
