By
Mahir Balunywa
Center for Critical Thinking and Alternative Analysis
I am exceedingly in agreement with Isaac Lubogo’s seemingly legal submission. His views answer many questions that have been percolating in my mind. That said, from a sociological perspective, we need to appreciate the very fact that, given the history of President Ssemakadde and the judiciary—specifically Justice Sekana and Chief Justice Alfonso—the two seem to be fulfilling their institutional mandates.
Justice Sekana and the Dollo judicial group seem to be acting out of bad faith against Ssemakadde ULS. But, again, they are protecting the institutions they serve. Equally, Ssemakadde also seems to be fulfilling his promise to the Bar. He promised to sweep and cleanse the judiciary of corruption and all sorts of injustices. That was the basis of his election.
It now becomes clear that the clash and judgment are not only personal but ideological, with ethical antidotes in a sense. The best way this should have been handled was not to pass such a harsh judgment but to have a conversation between both important institutions (the Judiciary and ULS).
If the judiciary wants ULS to stop criticizing it, then it should respect and shield itself against corrupt tendencies, which become the basis of Ssemakadde’s so-called derogatory statements. The Ghanaians have a saying: “If you want to stop the thief from stealing the fish, then you better tell the fish to stop smelling.” This is because the thief is tempted to steal the fish because of its good smell. Likewise, if the judiciary wants Ssemakadde’s radical Bar to stop criticizing its independence, it should stop acting in a way that invites such criticism.
If this trend continues of arresting radical Bar advocates, then I envisage more lawyers in prison. Just imagine if all those who voted for Ssemakadde find themselves in prison for contempt of court. What would remain of the legal fraternity? What would remain of the judiciary?
At one time, I wrote and argued in some of my earlier submissions that those celebrating the removal of court marshals may end up finding the same court marshals entrenched in civilian courts. Considering the various legal intellectual contestations following the Justice Seekana judgment, one would quickly equate the judgment closely to that of Freeman Mugabe, in which Eron Kiiza was also sent to prison.
Why do I argue this? Freeman Mugabe, the chairman of the court martial, in his judgment, argued that he had long warned Eron against undermining the court. Similarly, Chief Justice Dollo also publicly warned Ssemakadde about making such statements. He even told him to apologize to Justice Musa Seekana. Not long ago, Seekana passed a two-year sentence against Ssemakadde over a similar offense for which Eron Kiiza had been imprisoned. Both Eron Kiiza and Ssemakadde were not given the chance to enter a plea. Both Alfonso and Freeman Mugabe were bitter with Eron Kiiza and Ssemakadde.
Both Eron Kiiza and Ssemakadde were arrested without considering other options, such as fines (contrary to what happened with Lukwago and Alaka, who were fined by Chairman Elly Tumwine over contempt of court). This was also not the case with Male Mabirizi, who was convicted over contempt of court but was first ordered to pay 300 million shillings. Wasn’t this commercialization of justice?
Both Alfonso and Sekana were interested parties in the case which they presided over. Today, both are being criticized by the legal fraternity for passing a heavy judgment against the two. To this end, one might be tempted to argue that if the court martial hasn’t come to the judiciary, then the judiciary has gone to the court martial. With the recent appointments of new judges and promotions by the same Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces, society is yet to witness the unthinkable.
What does the future hold for justice in Uganda? Perhaps extrajudicial killings and arrests as the public loses more confidence in the judiciary. If those deemed defenders of the innocent (advocates) are being arrested like rats and cats on the streets, then what remains of the ignorant society? This is likely to breed more insecurity within the judiciary, as the public may end up targeting officials for revenge in the case of an unfair judgment. Would it be an overreach to argue that martial law seems to be taking root?
Would the arrests and imprisonment stop the radical Bar from fulfilling its mandate of continuously bashing the judiciary over what it calls corruption? At least in the eyes of the general public and the legal fraternity, as seen in the mainstream media, this judgment was unfortunate. I humbly believe, with a futuristic mindset, that this judgment should be rescinded. The future of the judiciary and its officers seems bleak, as the judgment appears to be adding more salt to an already bad, healing wound. Events in the judiciary are rapidly evolving. Remember, what grows fast collapses very fast.
Conclusion:
I think there is more to tomorrow than today. The parties involved should work to preserve tomorrow rather than today. The trend has already been set by the public, whom the judiciary claims to be serving. The same public overwhelmingly voted for Ssemakadde. Using the Latin maxim “Vox Populi, Vox Dei” (the voice of the people is the voice of God), the public seems to be a little furious following the judgment against Ssemakadde. They are already angry about the imprisonment of Eron Kiiza.
From a sociological context, the current judgment, if implemented against Ssemakadde, might worsen relations with the judiciary. This would destroy the original intent of the judiciary as an independent arm of governance, and more so, for the people. As I have argued before, revenge is becoming a common parlance in Uganda, and justice is increasingly being eroded by its very custodians. No one of us is here to stay forever.
As Shakespeare puts it, the world is nothing but a stage where we all come, play our part, and go. But what happens if you play a bad part in Shakespeare’s play, like that of Brutus who stabbed Julius Caesar? Would you be forgotten and forgiven? Would your children be spared, just in case you left before paying the price for your actions? Let’s serve the public with clear insight, knowing that one day we will retire and return to the very public we judged yesterday.
For God and my Country.