By 
THE High Court in Dar es Salaam has ordered Standard Chartered Bank and Petromark Africa Limited to pay 150m/- damages to a banker identified as Innocent Kalemara for cancelling a deal involving the sale of his two -storey residential house located at Tegeta area in Dar es Salaam region.
Judge Augustine Rwizile ruled in favour of Mr Kalemara, the plaintiff, after granting the suit he had lodged against the two defendants, the Bank and Petromark Company, which deals with Petroleum distribution in and outside Tanzania.
“I hold that based on the facts and evidence produced, he (the plaintiff) is entitled to general damages at the tune of 150m/- and costs of this suit,” the judge declared.
He ruled after hearing the evidence from both parties that the bank was not justified to withdraw a letter of undertaking after the plaintiff had transferred the property (the house) to Petromark Company to seal the deal.
According to him, it was crystal clear at the time he filed the case in court, the plaintiff had already recovered his house, but basing on the evidence presented, he had transferred the same to Petromark Company and submitted the title to the Bank on August 17, 2017.
“It should be recalled that the plaintiff had been informed by the bank four months before he submitted the same to them to do so on April 28, 2017. It follows, therefore, that the plaintiff had since April been in the process of transferring the same to the defendants,” the judge noted.
He further recalled that the termination was done on September 26, 2017, which was after one month after the submission of the document to the Bank. In normal circumstances, the judge said, the plaintiff for the period of at least four months also was expecting to sell his house to meet his goals.
Judge Rwizile pointed out that the plaintiff could not have sold the house that much for no reason.
“From the foregoing, I am convinced that the plaintiff suffered damages as the result of cancellation of the undertaking at the stage it had reached,” he said.
Petromark Company Limited, a registered oil marketing company based in Dar es Salaam, deals with Petroleum distribution in and outside Tanzania. It has been in constant banking relationship with Standard Chartered Bank since 2014, before their relationship turned sour in 2017.
Facts gathered are to the extent that in February 2017, Petromark Company applied for a credit facility in the form of a business mortgage. It was for the purpose of purchasing a residential house Plot No. 175 Block B, situated at Tegeta, with Title No. 119860 at the price of 600,000,000/-, property of the plaintiff.
The Bank accepted the application and offered the sum of 457m/-, subjected to complying with terms of the undertaking. The plaintiff was instructed by the Bank to transfer the title to Petromark Company’s name, which he duly complied and submitted the title to the Bank.
When all was done with plaintiff, the Bank cancelled the undertaking on ground that Petromark Company concealed important information and breached the terms of the facility and so was ineligible for the loan.
Since the property had changed hands from the plaintiff to Petromark Company, the transfer was to be effected for the plaintiff to get back his house. The plaintiff therefore, was not happy with the manner in which the Bank handled the matter, due to anguish and trouble caused to him.
He, therefore, decided to file the suit, claiming against the defendants for several reliefs, including payments of 332m/-being damages arising from cancellation of the Bank’s undertaking to him. He further demanded to be paid general damages to be assessed by the court.
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