A past meeting at one of PrideInn hotels in Mombasa. FILE PHOTO | KEVIN ODIT | NMG
Summary
- High Court Judge Patrick Otieno allowed the winding up petition filed by Tropicana Hotels Ltd saying the debt is not genuinely disputed.
- PrideInn has filed an appeal against the judgement.
- During the course of the hearing, PrideInn Group of hotels said it lost Sh90 million in contracts of service following the advertisement of the petition to wind it up.
PrideInn Hotels and Investments Ltd has been put under liquidation for inability to pay a Sh69.3 million debt.
High
Court Judge Patrick Otieno allowed the winding up petition filed by
Tropicana Hotels Ltd saying the debt is not genuinely disputed.
Justice
Otieno further ordered that PrideInn Hotels Investment Ltd, which owns a
chain of hotels, be placed under a receiver manager until the debt is
paid or discharged.
“I appoint the official receiver as
the interim liquidator of the company, the order of appointment takes
effect forthwith but the official receiver must take charge and running
of the affairs of the company not later than October 1,” said Justice
Otieno.
PrideInn has filed an appeal against the judgement.
The
judge ruled that reasons advanced by PrideInn Hotels Investments for
non-payment were neither genuine nor honest. “Therefore no challenge has
been made to the foundation of the claims so as to present a bonafide
dispute,” said Justice Otieno.
Wild card
He described the allegation by PrideInn of coercion as a wild card and not a genuine reason for not paying the debt.
“I
find this reason to be insufficient justification for failure to pay
the contracted debt, there is no genuine dispute disclosed by the
company in these proceedings,” said Justice Otieno.
Through
lawyer Kinyua Kamundi, Tropicana Hotels Ltd had told the court that
PrideInn Hotels Investments was duly informed of non-payment of the
money and of the default but it failed to pay the debt.
“More
than three months have passed since the demand was made and received
but the company has failed to satisfy the whole debt or part of it,” the
petition by Tropicana Hotels Ltd reads in part.
Tropicana
Hotels Ltd argued that its petition is presented on the grounds that
the group of hotels has been unable to pay a debt which was due in April
2012 in spite of issuing postdated cheques.
It sought
an order to have PrideInn Hotels and Investments, which operates a
chain of hotels in Nairobi and Mombasa, wound up and the court appoint
an interim liquidator.
During the course of the
hearing, PrideInn Group of hotels said it lost Sh90 million in contracts
of service following the advertisement of the petition to wind it up.
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