Okambah Limited Vs Alhaji Ganiyu A. Sule (1990)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report

KAWU, J.S.C.

By a specially indorsed writ, the respondent in this appeal, as plaintiff in the High Court, claim from the appellant the sum of N375,000.00. This amount was said to be balance due and payable to the respondent as commission for the sale of 200,000 bags of granulated sugar calculated at the rate of N2.00 per bag. The respondent filed an affidavit in support of his application for summary judgment under order 10 rule 1 of the High Court of Lagos (Civil Procedure) Rules, 1972, and the relevant paragraphs of the affidavit read as follows:-

“I, Ganiyu Akanbi Sule, Nigerian citizen, businessman of 29, Marcarthy Street, Lagos, muslim, make an oath and declare as follows:-

1. That I am the plaintiff in the above suit.
2. That the defendants are indebted to me in the sum of N375,000.00 as claimed in the endorsement at the back of the writ of summons.
3. That the said sum of N375,000.00 represents the balance of due to me as my agency commission which the 1st defendant on behalf of his company i.e. 2nd defendant agreed to pay me by letter dated 24th day of December, 1984 attached hereto as Exhibit ‘A’.
4. That the particulars of the claim are as stated in the statement of claim endorsed on the writ of summons.
5. That the defendants have entered appearance in the registry. A copy of the memorandum of appearance is attached hereto as Exhibit ‘B’
6. That the defendants through the agency of the plaintiff bought 200,000 bags of granulated sugar ex M.V. Nineta from Messrs, main food company limited for the sum of N7,500,000.00 at the rate of N37.50k per bag.
7. That the defendants paid the sum of N400,610.31k for custom duty and the sum of N180,000.00 for warehousing; the total sum of which amount to N580,610.31k.
8. That the defendants sold the whole shipload of 200,000 bags of granulated sugar in lots to several buyers at the rate of N30.00 per bag and collected the sum of N11,600,000.00k.
9. That defendants made a net profit of N3,519.389.69k after deduction of the various money paid

(1) as purchase price,

(2) custom duty,

(3) warehousing.

10. That the whole transactions between the defendants and Messrs. Main Food Company Limited who sold to the defendants AND all customers who bought from the defendants were conducted in my presence.
11. That when I made certain that all moneys due to the defendants from his customers have been fully paid to him, I approached him for my commission in accordance with the terms of the undertaken in his letter Exhibit ‘A’.
12. That 1st defendant refused to honour his agreement.
13. That to the best of my knowledge and belief the defendants have no defence to my claim because they could easily afford to pay my commission from their net profit of N3,519,389.69k realised from the transaction contained in Exhibit ‘A’.”

Now the document marked Exhihit ‘A’ and annexed to the respondent’s affidavit reads as follows:-

“Alhaji G.A. Sulle,

Dated December 24,1984,

29 McCarthy Street,

LAGOS.

Dear Sir,

10,000 (Ten thousand) metric tons granulated sugar ex M/V “NINETA”

This is to confirm our discussion on the above.