The Court of Appeal in Nairobi, on Friday, July 7, dismissed a petition filed by a man seeking to recover property he bought at an auction.
In the ruling delivered by a three-bench judge comprising; H. A. Omondi, Dr. Kibaya Imaana Laibuta, and Grace Wangui Ngenye-Macharia, the applicant failed to convince the court to rule in his favour.
"The applicants have failed to satisfy the twin principle for a grant for a stay of execution pursuant to rule 5(2) (b) of this Court's rules," read the ruling in part.
According to the buyer, during the auction held in 2022, he was misled to believe that there was a problem with the title deed but the matter would be sorted in court.
When both the seller and the buyer appeared in court to facilitate the property transfer, they were surprised to learn that a caveat had been placed on the property by the taxman.
Furthermore, the plot was already listed for sale, as auctioneers were preparing to recover the outstanding tax arrears totaling Ksh900 million owed by the seller.
The court heard that the caveat had been placed for 10 months, limiting the seller from transferring or developing on it.
In the taxman's defence, the owner of the property owed tax arrears dating back 30 years. Worse still they had failed to honour several notices.
According to the judge, the applicants (buyer and seller) were the authors of their own misfortunes and should have paid the tax arrears in time.
The court emphasised that the taxman had the right to sell the property to recover taxes and meet its obligations.
"Accordingly, we find that the applicants have not demonstrated that they have an arguable appeal. It is indubitable that the applicants have no proprietary rights over the suit property and, accordingly, their intended appeal is not arguable," the judges ruled.
During an auction, buyers are urged be exercise utmost caution to avoid falling victim to fraudsters posing as legitimate sellers.
One can enlist the services of an expert to ensure the item being auctioned is in good condition and the required documents are availed.
