Maverick city lawyer Eron Kizza has declared that he is going to contest for the position of the Uganda Law Society president in the coming annual general assembly limiting the tenure of the current President Issac Ssemakadde to one year.
Even though the law states that one has to hold the office of Uganda Law Society president for one year, it has been a practice that presidents are given two terms and in his first annual general assembly, there has been no election until two years end.
This was the case when Bernard Oundo was elected in 2022. He handed over office to Ssemakadde in 2024.
This investigative website can exclusively report that Kizza, a celebrated human rights lawyer, who on several occasions has been giving legal representation to journalists, human rights activities and environmental activists is clandestinely mobilizing support for his bid to replace exiled Ssemakadde in the coming annual general assembly which is expected to convene at the end of this year.
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Sources within Ssemakadde’s camp confirmed that they were shocked with Kizza’s decision of mooting to oust their man before his two years end even though he is leading them while in exile.
“Our plan has been to make sure that on the agenda in the annual general assembly no such thing as electing the Society president is discussed, we were aware that our enemies especially Tony Tumukunde and his henchman Joshua Byamazima are working with the Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka and planning to stop our president from being in office for a second year. But we did not expect our very own Kizza, we were shocked thats the truth,” a close friend to Ssemakadde said.
In one of the strategic meetings held last week on how to take over Uganda Law Society presidency, before securing his passport from the Criminal Division of the High Court, Kizza told his confidants that they should know that the law is on their side and they should now concentrate on mobilising support and securing financial support because they will need a lot of money for elections.
This website has establish that Anthony Asiimwe the Uganda Law Society vice president is also interested in the seat to replace his boss.
However, he did not imagine a serious contender like Kizza who is expected to be supported by serious senior lawyers because of his commitment to fight for Rule of Law in the country which resulted into him being imprisoned by military court because he protested the action of the military court to try Dr Kizza Besigye and his political assistant Hajji Obed Lutale.
Kizza is also looked at as a man of principals who stands his ground on important matters. He declined to take Ssemakadde’s advice to buy his freedom through apologising to Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba the Chief of Defence Forces and since then, sources claim, their relationship has taken a bitter twist.
Ssemakadde who saved a number of journalists and political activities from rotting in prison is also accused of betraying his funders during his campaign and one of the sources said that lawyers Male Mabirizi, speaker of parliament Annet Anita Among and deputy speaker Thomas Tayebwa are bitter with Ssemakadde because he promised them that once he is elected as Uganda Law Society president, he was going to make them associated members of the law society even though they are not enrolled advocates but are learned lawyers which he didn’t implement
However, Ssemakadde’s supporters are happy with what their man has achieved especially when he stood his ground and refused to apologies to Court of Appeal Justice Musa Ssekaana who imprisoned him on contempt of court offences and Justice Jane Frances Abodo the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) as the Chief Justice Owiny Dollo advised him to survive imprisonment.
Ssemakadde decided to run into exile as his lawyers fought to overturn Justice Ssekaana’s decision and lift the international warrant of arrest issued against him by Buganda Road Court Chief Magistrate Ronald Kayizzi.
