Musa Body sued over breach of contract

Musa Body, a local machinery company, has been sued over breach of contract.
Documents before court accuse Musa Body of breaching a supply contract after it chose to supply its grain milling machines to Naads instead of Hi-Agro, which had earlier contracted it.

Musa Body, and the company’s managing director, Mr Hadad Ssebunza, Hi-Agro claims, knowingly and aware of the consequences breached an agreement which they had entered in 2015.

According to documents before the Commercial Division of the High Court, Hi-Agro singed a contract with Musa Body on October 29, 2015 to supply a feed mill processing line and maize milling machines at a cost of Shs164m.

The machinery, documents show, was to be delivered within 60 days from the date of the first deposit which required Hi-Agro to pay 70 per cent of the contract price with the balance of 30 per cent paid upon delivery.

Failed to deliver
However, even after Hi-Agro had paid the full amount, according to documents, Musa Body failed or refused to deliver the machinery, occasioning serious losses on the company’s operation.

Hi-Agro claims that Musa Body, after relentless pressure, informed them they had acquired a higher bid from Naads, which required them to deliver machinery worth Shs8b.

Musa Body claims Hi-Agro was, through various platforms, informed of the new demands, offering to reimburse the contract sum, interest and damages. Mr Ssebunza through WhatsApp messages sent copies of the contract between Musa Body and Naads to appraise Hi-Agro of the new contract.

However, Hi-Agro contends the breach brought enormous loss and distress, resulting from different expenditures on a Shs50m loan acquired from Barclays Bank and payment for warehouse and electrical installations, among others. Musa Body, Hi-Agro claims, has since defaulted on a commitment to reimburse the contract sum despite several reminders.

Thus, Hi-Agro is seeking court to force Musa Body to repay the contract sum of Shs164m, pay money used on renting a warehouse (Shs2.5m per month for 12 months totaling Shs30m) expenses for electrical installations of Shs38m, a Barclays Bank loan of Shs50m and special damages of Shs83m.