Court orders woman to pay KSh360,000 after failing to marry man who financed her education

A court in western Uganda ruled that a woman pay USh10.4 million (KSh360,991) in damages for breaching a marriage promise to a man who had paid her college tuition. Her application seeking to overturn the ruling has now been dismissed

In February, the Kanungu Magistrate Court found that Ms Fortunate Kyarikunda, a law enforcement officer, breached a 2018 promise to marry Richard Tumwine, a local teacher.

The promise

He had paid her fees to study for a diploma in Law on the understanding that she would be his future wife, the court heard. 

Magistrate Asanasio Mukobi ruled that Ms Kyarikunda’s application could not stand since she had forged signatures and altered her evidence during amendment.

Her lawyers, from M/s Nasike & Company Advocates, said they were not satisfied with the court ruling and would appeal.

"Whereas Mr Richard Tumwiine’s story was heard, no one has ever heard from our client and yet people continue to judge her wrongly. We shall appeal because all we want is for our client to be heard," said one counsel.

Erasmus Nabimanya, representing Mr Tumwiine, welcomed the court's decision but said they should have been awarded with costs of the suit. 

"While we are happy that the filed application was dismissed, court did not award us costs yet we spent a lot of money. In consultation with my client, we shall consider filling an application demanding for the costs of this dismissed application," said Nabimanya.

Case filed last year

Mr Tumwine filed the case in July 2022 saying that Ms Kyarikunda commitment to marry him is what had formed the basis of his decision to sponsor her Law diploma course at the Law Development Centre in Kampala. 

Court records indicate the two met and fell in love in 2015 when teaching at the same primary school in Kanungu. 

Tumwine testified that she walked back on a February 2022 date she had set for their marriage introduction ceremony and later opting out of the relationship altogether on grounds that he was old.