Court rejects businessman Edward Sendyona bankruptcy bid, bank cleared to sell property

The High Court’s Commercial Division has dismissed a bid by city businessman Edward Sendyona Mukasa to be declared bankrupt, clearing the way for Equity Bank Uganda to sell his remaining home to recover an unpaid loan.

Mukasa, a former supermarket and real estate investor, filed Bankruptcy Cause No. 3 of 2025 under the Insolvency Act.

He told court that his Ark Supermarket business in Kyaliwajjala collapsed during the Covid-19 pandemic. He said the collapse forced him to sell family land, yet he still failed to clear an Shs80 million loan he obtained in 2018.

The loan was secured against two condominium units in Kyaliwajjala, Wakiso District.

Equity Bank, however, told court that it restructured the loan in 2023 to Shs100 million. The bank said it released one title after Mukasa paid Shs40 million, but he later defaulted on the remaining Shs60 million.

The outstanding balance has since risen to about Shs84.2 million.

In a ruling delivered on May 31, 2026, Lady Justice Dr Ginamia Melody Ngwatu found that Mukasa had not proved that he could not pay his debts.

The judge noted that Mukasa had been unemployed for 12 years, including at the time he took the loan. She also said he knowingly mortgaged his family home.

Justice Ngwatu warned against using bankruptcy to avoid genuine debts. She said banks lend depositors’ money and have a right to recover loans by enforcing securities.

The court dismissed Mukasa’s petition and allowed Equity Bank to exercise its statutory power of sale over the remaining condominium unit.

Mukasa was also ordered to pay the costs of the petition.