WALVIS BAY – The estate of Abed Uushona is to pay N$145 000 in damages after it was found that he caused the fateful accident that also claimed his life in 2020.
The High Court found Uushona guilty of negligence in the case of an accident that took place between Onethindi and Oshigambo on 12 August 2020. As a result, his estate was ordered by High Court Judge Herman Oosthuizen to pay N$145 000 in damages to Nehemia Shafuda, who instituted the claim against Elina Tuuhulu Hango, the first defendant in the case.
Uushona’s estate, represented by Hango, is also required to pay interest at the rate of 20% per annum on the sum from 17 May 2024 until the full amount is settled.
Uushona was driving a Mazda Drifter when it collided with a Toyota Hilux in which Nehemia Shafuda was travelling.
According to Shafuda’s testimony, he was driving with his wife and two children when the collision occurred.
According to him, he was in the correct lane when he noticed Uushona’s vehicle approaching them head-on. The collision was unavoidable, he recalled.
Oosthuizen, in his ruling, stated that the deceased travelled on the wrong side of the road just before the accident occurred and was returning to the correct side when he collided with Shafuda.
Oosthuizen also pointed out that Shafuda was taking evasive action to avoid the collision; however, the collision occurred with the point of maximum engagement just inside the deceased’s lane of travel, proving fatal for Uushona.
“In the result, the deceased was the cause of the accident and solely negligent. The court found that the deceased, Abed Uushona, was solely responsible for the collision and Uushona’s vehicle was in the wrong lane and collided head-on with Shafuda’s vehicle, which was in its correct lane,” Oosthuizen found. The decision was influenced by the expert testimony of accident reconstruction witness Johan Joubert, whose findings indicated that the late Uushona was negligent and caused the fatal accident by driving on the wrong side of the road.
-edeklerk@nepc.com.na