A civil suit filed by Abdul Majid Mayan, a Sudanese against Mr John Derivicend, a Briton, was on Wednesday called before the Brikama Magistrate’s Court, presided over by Magistrate EF M’Bai.

Abdul Majid Maya, the complainant told the court that the defendant, Mr Derivicend owes him D200,000 as the balance left from a D500,000 contract they (the complainant and the defendant) had agreed for the finishing touches of the defendant’s house.

According to Mr Mayan, barely seven years ago, Mr Derivicend explained to him that he wanted to buy a piece of land at Busumbala Village. He told the court that it was later purchased from one Ismaila Yabo at Busumbala but, both his and Mr Yabo’s names were on the ownership document. Mr Mayan went on to say that he approached the accused for clarification concerning the plot as the ownership document contained two names.

“I told him that was not the correct procedure”, he explained.

He further indicated that he requested that the document should be changed into his name.

“After the changing of the document, Mr Derivicend promised to appoint me as the supervisor for the laying of the foundation stone of his house on the said piece of land, while he appointed one Sereign Kanyi as the contractor,” Mr Mayan added.

Mr Mayan told the court that before the defendant left for the UK after the completion of the foundation, he terminated Mr Kanyi’s services and handed his job over to Ismaila Yabo, the one he purchased the piece of land from, in order to complete the whole building. He said in 2004, when he came back from the UK and told him that he was not satisfied with Mr Yabo’s work and that he would sack him and call back the first contractor, Sereign Kanyi. “When Mr Kanyi came, the building was completed within the period of one year, eight months after the defendant’s second trip to the UK”, Mr Mayan said.

Mr Mayan finally told the court that it was after this that he and the defendant had the D500,000 contract for the finishing touches of the house. He said he was given D250,000 by the defendant as  advance payment before he left for the UK for the third time. Then the new contract continued, and when he returned back from the UK he gave him another advance payment of D50,000. “After sometime, he demanded that I complete the work. I reacted to this by asking him to effect the payment of the D200,000 balance”, he concluded.

At this juncture, the Presiding Magistrate decided to adjourn the case to September 4, 2007.