I refer to Legal Notice No. 4 of 2025 dated February 11, 2025 in which President Museveni established a tribunal of inquiry into my conduct composed of Retired Justice Galdino Okello as chairperson, and Retired Justice Jotham Tumwesigye and Justice Winfrida Beatrice Karosso as members.
I make further reference to my lawyers’ letter (KBW Advocates) Ref: No. CIV/136/2023 dated May 19, 2025 and retired Justice Okello’s unreferenced letter in reply dated 27th May 2025 written on behalf of the tribunal.
Having patiently waited for over four and a half months for the tribunal to complete its ‘preparatory phase; eight months since the tribunal’s establishment and for over four and a half years since March 2021 to get justice, I have been compelled to once again write to the tribunal.
This commentary on the tribunal brings to your attention individually and collectively the constitutional, legal, ethical and moral issues concerning the tribunal, that require your urgent attention, reflection, consideration and action.
I am further writing to inform you that, basing on all the grounds I have laid out in the commentary, the tribunal you were appointed to is a nullity, and cannot constitutionally, lawfully, legitimately or honorably proceed or grant justice to me and the people of Uganda.
Each member of this tribunal not only has the duty to respect, uphold, and defend our Constitution. You have all built a reputation over many years in law, public service, and in society.
I appeal to you to save your respective reputation by distancing yourselves from a process that violates the Constitution, undermines judicial independence, and wastes scarce public resources and to stand on the side of the rule of law, justice and judicial independence.
I also appeal to your respective consciences and integrity, not to lend yourselves to an enterprise that is clearly unconstitutional and unjust, but which bears stark resemblance to a Kangaroo court.
IN VIEW OF ALL THE ABOVE FACTORS, I REQUEST:
(i) each one of you to either decline or retract your respective appointments to the tribunal; or (ii) to recuse yourselves from participating in the tribunal’s activities and proceedings.
If, however, the tribunal chooses to proceed, I request the tribunal: (i) to immediately avail me with all the reports and documents that were availed to the tribunal upon its appointment; and (ii) all the laws and rules under which the tribunal will be conducting its proceedings.
(iii) to hold a public preliminary tribunal hearing to consider and pronounce yourselves on all the issues raised before commencing the substantive tribunal hearings; and (iv) provide me with adequate funding from the tribunal’s official budget allocation, to enable me to prepare for and to make my defence I also retain all my rights to, among others, defend myself before a public hearing, cross-examine witnesses, tender documents, call witnesses, and remain ready to defend myself against any charges the tribunal may frame out of:
(i) Chief Justice Owiny Dollo’s illegal and incompetent referral document (baptized as a complaint by the Judicial Service Commission; or (ii) the Judicial Service Commission’s unconstitutional Report; or (iii) the tribunal’s unconstitutional Terms of Reference; or (iv) all the above three documents.
As retired Justices of the Supreme court of Uganda and as Uganda’s senior citizens who should no longer be swayed with promises and/ or prospects of appointments or promotions to big offices, you are best placed to uphold our Constitution and to safeguard judicial independence. I do hope that you will choose to do the right thing.
The author is a retired justice of the Supreme court.
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