By GRACE CHAILE LESOETSA
FORMER Defence Permanent Secretary Stardy Mwale has denied owing Simonga Farms Limited $530, 000 being balance for the purchase of a farming Mazabuka.
Simonga Farms wants the Lusaka High Court to order for the re-possession of the farm together with all the machinery and poultry equipment from Mr Mwale.
It is also seeking an order for repayment all the income collected from the operations of the farm since August 1, 2018 as well as damages for breach of contract.
Simonga Farms wants an order that Mr Mwale pays all NAPSA contributions and outstanding penalties that have accrued on the Simonga Farms account during the time he has been operating on the farm on account of being an agent or officer.
It is also seeking an order of interim detention or preservation of equipment and an order that Mr Mwale indemnifies it the sum of K39, 624 incurred in ZRA penalties.
Simonga Farms wants interest on all amounts due and an order for unjust enrichment.
But Mr Mwale in defence said he had not expressed any interest to purchase the remaining extent of the farm from Simonga.
He said that he and Simonga entered into a verbal agreement.
He said he agreed to get a loan from the bank to pay Simonga but when the bank asked for the certificate of title as collateral for the loan, Simonga refused to release the certificate for the subdivision that he had purchased.
He said when Simonga refused to release the certificate of title for the farm, he was unable to get the loan, therefore he was unable to pay the plaintiff. “The defendant will aver at trial that the plaintiff and the defendant agreed that as the defendant was managing the poultry section of the farm, income from the said farm was to be deposited into the plaintiff’s First national Bank account and the plaintiff’s directors were to be used for NAPSA and employee’s salaries,” he stated.
Mr Mwale said the directors did not keep their part of the agreement and they started making weekly withdraws from the said account.
He said the directors have withdrawn more than $20,000.00 from the account and further that he stopped depositing into the account when the directors started making daily withdraws and not weekly withdraws as was agreed.
