A Bomet high court has extended orders restraining a bank from selling or undertaking possession of Itibo land belonging to the family of late Governor Dr Joyce Laboso.
The court certified the matter before it as urgent which was filed by Ms Judy Laboso who is a sister of late Laboso argues that Stannic bank wants to recover a loan amounting to Sh352 million (USD3,524,000).
The bank which has been listed as the fourth respondent in the case is allowed to proceed and deal with the suit property, she stands to suffer greatly and irreparably with other members of her family who are dependent of the property.
Mr Edwin Abonyo who is the husband of the late Laboso and the administrator of her state has been listed as the first respondent, Ms Mary Laboso, the other sister of late Laboso is the second respondent while Kaleen Mokthar Ahamed is the third respondent interested party in the case.
In the court documents filed by lawyer Mr Ondieki Mogambi, Ms Laboso further disputes the sum disbursed by the bank saying from the documents obtained she has established that only Sh33 million (USD 322, 395) was disbursed adding that the family was not aware of the Sh 352 million .
“From the documents obtained from the bank, I discovered from the charge documents and the titles that the said properties were charged to a loan which is not even a third of what reflects in the charge documents,” Ms Laboso told the court.
She has expressed fears that there were neither minutes nor resolutions passed by Itibo limited which is the affected party to borrow and charge the properties enlisted including the suit property.
“The intended sale is illegal, un-procedural and void which needs the intervention of this honorable court because there were no minutes passed by the directors of Itibo Limited to take loan against which the fourth defendant intends to recover by exercising its power of sale over the said property,” read the document in part.
It further reads, “The bank never bothered to request for the said minutes and resolutions before issuance of the loan hence the loan was illegally issued and charge over the said property is void an initio and unenforceable at the very least.”
The applicant further claims the loan was not utilized for the business of the Itibo limited but rather squandered by the first, second and third respondents.
The two sisters (Mary and Judy) including Abonyo who is the administrator of the late Laboso estate and David Langat who is the brother of late governor are the four shareholders of Itibo limited.
In the supporting affidavit filed at the court before Lady Justice Roselyn Korir, the applicant said Itibo limited is the registered owner of all that property known as Title number Kericho/Kapletundo/Chemagel block 1/28 allocated to it in a succession cause number 46 of 2014 in the estate of their late mother Mrs Rebecca Laboso.
From the charge documents, the plaintiff said, the charge was signed by late Laboso and Kaleen Mokthar Ahamed and that there was no company seal affixed to the charge documents and letter of offer leading to preparation of the charge and subsequent charging of the suit
property.
“As a result of the respondent’s illegal actions, the said loan remains unpaid, consequently since the bank did not conduct due diligence as required, it should not be allowed to benefit from its own mistakes by selling the Itibo Limited property,” says Laboso.
There was no representation on the part of the first respondent with lawyer Mogambi saying he has been unable to serve the third respondent since he was out of the country.
The second respondent who was present in court but did not also have a representation was asked to look for a lawyer. The matter will come up for mention on May 12th.
By Joseph Obwoch
