Mr Richard Tumwine, a teacher in Kanungu, whose fiancee rejected claiming that he was of old age. PHOTO | ROBERT RUHEREZA
A woman fined Shs10.4m last month for breaking a promise to marry a man who had sponsored her education has asked court to overturn the verdict.
In an application filed through M/s Nasike & Co. Advocates, Ms Fortunate Kyarikunda asked the Kanungu Chief Magistrate’s Court to set Grade One Magistrate Asanasio Mukobi’s decision aside.
The magistrate, in a judgment following an ex-parte hearing, found that Ms Kyarikunda breached a 2018 promise to marry Mr Richard Tumwine who paid her tuition to study a diploma in law on the understanding that she would be his future wife.
“The said money was sent to the defendant in the hope that their relationship goes an extra mile up to marriage which did not take place at the defendant’s instance. The defendant cannot, therefore, retain the plaintiff’s money and also withhold the consent to marry him,” the magistrate ruled.
Justification
He added: “Consequently, I hold that … the promise to marry was not fulfilled by the defendant … The excuse of the defendant was that she could not get married to an old man as if she did not see young men during the four years of courtship.”
Magistrate Mukobi then ordered the woman to pay Mr Tumwine, a primary school teacher, Shs9.43m in tuition refund and an additional Shs1m compensation.
In her application, Ms Kyarikunda contends that she was not duly served with summons to file her defence in civil suit No.024/2022, thus violating her right to be heard.
In her affidavit, Ms Kyarikunda states that she did not receive the purported service of summons to file her defence through WhatsApp as her sister Rhona Atukwasa was the one using her phone at that time.
“I have a strong defence to the suit because the respondent/plaintiff has no cause of action against me. I verily believe to be true that had I been given an opportunity to be heard in this matter, court would not have passed judgement against me,” the applicant avers.
Her side of story
She adds: “I believe the court shall reach a different decision after hearing my side of the story. Failure to serve me with the summons in the said matter was a direct violation of my constitutional right to be heard and was against the rules of natural justice.”
Hearing of the application has been set for 10am on February 23.
The applicant prayed to court to set aside the judgement and the decree in civil suit No.024 /2022, allow her to file defence so that the case is determined after inter-party hearing and that execution of orders in the first ex-parte judgment be stayed.
Asked about the development, Mr Tumwine, who until now has been celebrating his court victory, told this newspaper that “I have asked my lawyers to handle the application and I have no problem with the hearing of the case inter party”.
Tumwine’s lawyer speaks
Mr Tumwine’s lawyer Erasmus Nabimanya last evening said he had received instructions to challenge the application and will ask court to summon Ms Kyarikunda to appear in person in court to confirm if she indeed is the petitioner since there are noticeable differences in the signature on the affidavit, other official documents at her work place and sign-in book at the primary school where she taught together with Mr Tumwine.