Veteran political journalist and also the Jinja city Senior Resident City Commissioner (RCC) Ahmed Kateregga Musaazi has narrated how judicial officers force suspects to sell off their properties to secure bail.
Appearing on radio Simba’s Gasimbaganne nebannamawulire talk show, Kateregga said that the reason RDC’s intervene in Court issues resulted from several complaints they received from people against judicial officers especially magistrates and Court clerks who demand money from them to have their people released from prison on court bail.
“Chief Justice Dr Flavian Zeija is on test and should know that he is presiding over a judiciary which is under crisis. He should know that people no longer have trust in his judiciary and it is the reason why mob justice is soon going to be rampant,” Kateregga said.
He told off Justice Zeija’s judicial officers that addressing them in Court as lordships and worships doesn’t make them close to God as they think but they should know that they are servants of the people of Uganda according to the Constitution that is why they should serve them without forcing them to lose their properties while they enrich themselves.
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He noted that many people especially elites are concentrating on suspects who are facing politically related offences yet some judicial officers are taking advantage of people’s ignorance about their rights to force them to pay for basic service like releasing them on bail.
Ono Bwino understands that upcountry, magistrates have dealers who sell properties including goats, cows, banana, plots of land which the suspects surrender to regain their freedom on bail.
Judicial officers are also accused of using their judicial powers to snatch people’s wives and husbands. He gave an example that in 2024, a judicial officer in Lubaga Division survived an angry mob at a public gathering who were accusing him of snatching their colleague’s wife who later took 80% of his wealth after conniving with the women to preside over a fraudulent divorce case.
However, Justice Dr Douglas Singiza stated that people with such complaints should make their complaint with his Judicial Service Commission noting that he will help them to punish such errant judicial officers who abuse their judicial powers for enrichment.
