Facts
The plaintiff firm filed an action against the defendant council for Shs. 23,756/75 being payment for medical cards sold and supplied to the defendant Council. The plaintiff firm supplied the cards at the oral request of an Executive Officer, of the defendant Council. When the cards were supplied, the defendant refused to accept them on the ground that they had not been ordered officially and plaintiff could not produce a written order or a local purchase order. The plaintiff got a local purchase order from the defendant after the defendant had refused to accept the cards but did not produce it to the defendants when demanding payment.
The main issues which the court decided were: (1) Whether the plaintiff delivered to the defendant and the defendants accepted the cards, (2) Whether the suit was premature or maintainable.
Held: (1) “It cannot be said that the plaintiff firm did not know that the reason that defendant Council would not pay or accept thee was a contract was because of the lack of a written order or a local purchase order. Ramesh Patel himself has admitted that the Council only makes payment when the invoice is accompanied by a Local purchase order is produced; the defendant Council cannot make payment. The non-production by the plaintiff firm of a local purchase order which it alleges it received is inexplicable. In the circumstances it is quite possible that the local purchase order allegedly received by the plaintiff firm may have been a fake, or a blank or may have been a local purchase order referring to another transaction. If it was a genuine one referring to this matter, I can see no reason why it was not produced to the defendant Council prior to August 1969, especially as Ramesh Patel has said he had the local purchase order with him since December 1967.
There has been no evidence at all of the contents of the said local purchase order, nor is there evidence as to who had signed the local purchase order, assuming it was signed, nor that the signatory, if any, was an authorized person who could sign a local purchase order for the defendant Council. I therefore find on the evidence that it was likely that the plaintiff firm had received some sort of local purchase order, but there is no evidence as to what the contents of the local purchase order were, nor is there evidence that the local purchase order was signed by an authorized person. In the circumstances, I am of the view that the plaintiff firm has failed to prove that the defendant Council had issued a local purchase order in respect of this particular transaction for the printing of 100,000 cards.
I have already said that there was no acceptance by the Council of the cards when they were sent to the Council by the plaintiff firm, and the plaintiff firm has failed to prove that the defendant Council had issued a local purchase order in respect of this particular transaction for the printing of 100,000 cards. I have already said that there was no acceptance by the Council of the cards when they were sent to the council by the plaintiff firm, and the plaintiff firm has also been unable to produce a note or memorandum in writing of the contract signed by the party to be charged or by his agent in his behalf in terms of section 6 of the Sale of Goods Ordinance, Cap. 214 of the Laws.
Ramesh Patel has said he agreed with the District Council orally through Mr. Kasambala for the printing of the 100,000 cards at the agreed price of Shs. 21,000/- he also alleged such oral contract was confirmed in writing by a local purchase order from the defendant Council. The defendant Council has denied that such a contract was officially entered into with the Council and insisted on the plaintiff firm producing a written order or a local purchase order to that effect. The plaintiff firm has failed to produce any written order or local purchase order, and in the circumstances, I am of the view that the plaintiff firm has failed to prove
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