SK Macharia estate placed under receivership over Sh34m debt

By NANCY AKINYI

STANDARD REPORTER

The estate of businessman SK Macharia and his wife has been placed under receivership.

This follows their failure to pay Sh500,000 judgement sum issued ten years ago.

The money attracted a compounded interest at the rate of 19 per cent per month, backdated to December 1986 until payment is made in full. At the time of filling the bankruptcy petition two years ago, the amount stood at Sh34,854,510.

Justice Kalpana Rawal ordered the debtors to pay the amount with an interest of 19 per cent compounded monthly from December 1986 until payment in full to the creditor, Ocean Freight Transport Company Limited.

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Bankruptcy petition

Commercial court judge Martha Koome placed the estates under the official receiver on Friday following a successful bankruptcy petition against the two.

"Accordingly, I hereby issue a receiving order against the debtors as prayed in the petition, the estate of the two shall henceforth be placed under the official receiver of the Republic of Kenya," ordered Koome.

Ocean Freight filed a bankruptcy petition against the couple for failing to pay over Sh34 million.

The court said the debtors failed to settle the amount despite bankruptcy notices having been issued to them.

"They were served with the bankruptcy notices and persisted in their refusal to settle the claim," Koome said. The court said the matter was simple and only required payment of the petitioner’s deposit of Sh500,000, when it was demanded after the debtors failed to proceed with the sale of the plot as initially agreed.

The court noted that the debtors were paid the said sum in 1986 in respect of a plot in Industrial Area, which they did not transfer.

The judge said the petitioner through its managing director Livingstone Ndung’u Waithaka had proved the existence of the debt.

The amount in question is in respect of a decretal amount on a judgement obtained by the petitioner in 2001. Macharia and his wife, Purity Gathoni Githae’s application to set aside the bankruptcy notices was dismissed by the court two years ago. They filed notices of objection to the bankruptcy petition.

The debtors contended the summary judgement given to the petitioner was irregular and interest rate was unconscionable.