Self-exiled Supreme Court Justice Dr Esther Kitimbo Kisakye’s legal struggle to save her retirement package suffered a setback after the Deputy Chief Justice Dr Flavian Zeija dropped her Constitutional petition at the last moment before the Constitutional Court session kicks off.
Justice Kisakye through her lawyers led by Constitutional law giant Peter Walubiri filed different constitutional petitions in the Constitutional Court including challenging President Museveni’s decision to set up a committee to investigate the findings of the then chairperson of the Judicial Service Commission Justice Benjamin Kabito which resulted into recommending Justice Kisakye’s dismissal from the public service.
She also entirely challenged the report and accused Justice Kabito of showing bias against her and violating her constitutional rights even though Justice Kabito’s report assured the president that there was evidence produced by the complainants led by the Chief Justice Owiny Dollo and the Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka that placed her at the scene of crime which is being investigated.
She further accused Dollo of violating her constitutional rights by denying her the opportunity to read her dissenting ruling in the several applications resulting from a presidential election petition filed by National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu (Bobi Wine) contesting President Museveni’s 2021 elections victory.
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She also accused the Permanent Secretary and Secretary to judiciary Dr Pius Bigirimana of violating her constitutional rights by blocking her monthly salary and allowances.
She asked court to declare that Bigirimana’s actions were illegal.
Last month, lawyers representing all parties met before the Supreme Court registrar and conferenced on the matters by agreeing and rephrasing the entire grounds and prayers before the file is forwarded to five justices of the Constitutional Court
According to highly placed sources at the Constitutional Court, Dr Kisakye’s files were forwarded to the Deputy Chief Justice by the registrar so that he can institute a panel of justices to handle the matter.
However, the files were dropped at the last minute and they were not put on the cause list of cases to be heard in the coming session which is starting next week.
Sources said that the deputy chief justice reasoned that since Justice Kisakye’s issues are still under probe by the committee established by the President, the judiciary should not intervene since the committee is still doing its work.
Hence according to court sources, Kisakye’s file will be handled after the determination of the probe committee.
Justice Zeija’s decision has threatened Justice Kisakye’s fate because she is challenging the establishment of the probe committee and one of her prayers is to stop the proceedings of the committee until the determinations of her constitutional petitions.
Sources within Justice Kisakye’s lawyers revealed that they are in consultation with her with the aim of coming up with a guided way forward against the decision of the deputy chief justice.
They allege that his actions are threatening their petitions because if it remains as it is, their client will be badly affected and their petitions will turn academic.
The lawyers are also claiming that judiciary leadership are denying their client justice. They allege that their client filed her first petition in 2021 but since then, it has never been heard even though they wrote several letters to the former deputy chief justice Richard Butera pleading with him to have their cases be heard.
However, when president Museveni established the probe committee chaired by former Justices of the Supreme Court justice Galdino Okello and others, he tasked them to probe and establish whether she had a duty to adhere to the practice of sharing her rulings with other justices on the panel.
The panel was also tasked to probe whether Kisakye disobeyed the directive of the Chief Justice, as head of the panel, and whether her conduct in delivering the ruling as a single Justice of the Supreme Court in a matter where quorum had been empaneled, was in breach of the Uganda Code of Judicial conduct and the practice of the court.
The panel was also tasked to determine whether the verbal public statements made by justice Kisakye put the image of the Judiciary into disrepute and whether her action of associating with lawyer Kassim Male Mabirizi who filed an application related to the matter and addressing the media and the public to informally address a matter before a court breached the provisions of the Uganda Code of Judicial Conduct.
The panel also have to determine whether Justice Kisakye absconded from duty when she extended her approved leave period and did not report back for duty at the Supreme Court upon her return from medical leave and whether a recommendation should be made to the President for her to be removed from the office of Justice of the Supreme Court of Uganda.
It is not clear when the committee will start its work even though justice Kisakye exiled herself in the United States of America claiming that her life was in danger and that there were bad people who wanted to kill her.
