Kamtai Waine v MVIT

• Jurisdiction: Papua New Guinea
• Citation: [1993] PNGLR 446
• Date: 19 February 1993
• Court: National Court
• Year: 1993

National Court: Woods J

Judgment Delivered: 19 February 1993

1 Negligence—liability—motor vehicle accident—proof of registration and insurance—bad road or negligent driving?

2 Damages—death—dependency claim—3 widows and 3 children—provincial minister—salary on which to base future loss

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Woods J: This is a claim on behalf of the widows and children of one Yuale Gikau who it is alleged died from injuries he received in a motor vehicle accident on 22 March 1990 when he was a passenger in a motor vehicle registered No AGE 890 driven by Gikau Yuale which went out of control and overturned on the Dege Paume road in the Simbu Province between Gomgale Village and the Gumine township.

The lawyer for the Plaintiff indicated to the court at the beginning of the trial that the named plaintiff Kamtai Waine who was the first wife of the deceased had died a month ago. In view of the difficulties of ascertaining who is entitled to act on behalf of the estate of the plaintiff and in the circumstances of PNG I feel it is appropriate in a dependency claim like this where the plaintiff was putting her name forward as the initiator of these dependency proceedings to substitute the second wife Polo Del as the Plaintiff.

The witnesses for the Plaintiff as to the circumstances of the accident were a passenger and the police officer who did the investigation into the accident. The passenger said that she was on the back of the Toyota in question when there was some loose gravel and the road was slippery and the vehicle overturned. She said that she and two others who were on the back of the utility jumped off the back when the vehicle got into trouble and they do...