Top 8 Court battles that made headlines in 2020

The year 2020 had very many court battles but there are those popular ones that made headlines in the country.

Watchdog Uganda brings you some of those court battles;

1. Former ISO boss Kaka’s son Brian Bagyenda sentenced over girlfriend murder

In February 2020 the High Court in Kampala sentenced three people including Brian Bagyenda, the son to Col. Kaka Bagyenda, the former Director-General of Internal Security Organization to 30 years imprisonment after being found guilty for murdering his girlfriend Enid Twijukye.

On 4th January 2017, Bagyenda and his co-convicts killed Twijukye at Plot 2 Njobe Road in Luzira, Nakawa Division in Kampala. Although Bagyenda told the court that he had a history of mental illness, it was rejected by the High Court, the trial Judge Kazibwe Kawumi dismissed the defence argument and passed the Judgement that took the convicted to 30 years.

2. Constitutional Court nullifies the public order management Act.

In 2013, the government enacted a controversial Public Order Management law (POMA). The law received a lot of criticism from inception as a Bill because it was infringing the 1995 Constitution of the Republic of Uganda. And for the last seven (7) years this law has been implemented in its archaic draconian form.

Citizens on their part took various initiatives protesting the said law and in 2016 a petition was filed by Human Rights watchdogs; Indigenous Voluntary Associates, The Uganda Association of Female Lawyers, Individuals such as MP Muwanga Kivumbi and Activist Bishop Zac Niringiye, saying it was filed within the spirit of Public Interest.

While passing the ruling on in March 2020, in a majority decision of 4:1 Justices of the court including Kenneth Kakuru, Geoffrey Kiryabwire, Elizabeth Musoke and Cheborion Barishaki, the court faulted Parliament for passing and enacting a section of the law that is intended to alter an earlier decision of the court which is contrary to section 92 of the Constitution.

3. Sudhir winning Bank of Uganda in Shs397bn court case appeal

In August 2019, the Commercial Court judge Justice David Wangutusi had passed a ruling stating that BoU/Crane Bank (in receivership) did not have a legal basis to sue Sudhir, the owner of Crane Bank, then the second-biggest bank in Uganda.

However, Bank of Uganda/Crane Bank in receivership (BoU) appealed against an August 26, 2019 ruling.

In June 2020 the Panel of judges led by then acting Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny- Dollo upheld the judgment of Commercial Court judge Wangutusi in an application filed by Bank of Uganda seeking a refund of Shs397 billion from Sudhir which he allegedly siphoned from the defunct Crane Bank. The court dismissed the case with costs.

4. Court Martial reduces Boda Boda 2010’s Kitatta, sentence from 10 years to 3 years

In August this year, the Former Boda Boda 2010 Association patron Abdallah Kitatta was set free by the Appellant Court Martial chaired by Elly Turyamubona who reduced Kitatta and Ngobi’s ten-year jail sentence to three years and deducted the time they had already spent in custody thus making them free.

In May 2019, the General Court Martial chaired by Lt General Andrew Gutti found Kitatta and his bodyguard Ngobi guilty of unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition. They were sentenced to a maximum sentence of ten years for each of the offences but they were to run concurrently and at the time of sentencing, they were left with a sentence of eight years and eight months.

The duo had also been charged with ten different accounts however court acquitted them for lack of evidence. Through his lawyers, Isaac Juuko and Abdullah Kiwanuka Kitata challenged the sentence in the Court Martial Appeal arguing that the sentences given to them were harsh and excessive and indeed in July 2020 the appellant court agreed with them and the sentence was reduced.

In his ruling Turyamubona noted that instead, the duo should have been sentenced to serve one year, eight months and six days starting from the day they were convicted in May 2019.

5. Hamis Kiggundu wins sh41b court case against Diamond Trust Bank (DTB-Kenya)

In October 2020 again the Commercial Court head Justice Henry Peter Adonyo ruled that the credit facilities DTB-Kenya offered to Kiggundu were illegal since it is not licenced by Bank of Uganda as required under the law to carry out financial business in Uganda.

In March this year, Ham and his two companies Ham Enterprise Limited and Kiggs International (U) limited dragged DTB -Uganda and DTB-Kenya to the Commercial Court accusing them of fraudulently siphoning over sh120b from his accounts without his knowledge and consent.

Although DTB-Kenya head of debt recovery and company secretary Stephen Kodumbe contended that the bank never conducted any business in Uganda and the credit facilities were offered in Kenya. Justice Adonyo ruled; “The act of DTB-Kenya in conducting financial business is licenced in Kenya and it therefore illegally offered the facilities in Uganda. Consequently, this application is allowed with costs.”

6. High Court dismisses Kibalama’s case against National Unity Platform (NUP)

In October 2020 Ugandans still, witness another great court battle between the members of National Unity Platform (NUP) and those who claimed to be the members of the National Unity Reconciliation and Development Party (NURP) who challenged the changing of the party’s name to National Unity Platform without their consent.

In August, Difas Basile and Hassan Twala petitioned the court, contending that the change of name from National Unity Reconciliation and Development Party (NURP) to NUP was illegal, they had also asked the Electoral Commission (EC) to stop recognizing NUP and to de-gazette it.

The complainants, who had claimed to be the founder members of NURP, filed the suit at the Civil Division of the High Court, against Robert Kyagulanyi the current leader of NUP, Moses Nkonge Kibalama (former leader) David Lewis Rubongoya the secretary General and all party’s leadership committee.

However, Justice Musa Ssekaana dismissed the case alluding that the application filed was not brought under any known procedure.

“This court declines to entertain the application since it was not brought under any known procedure and secondly it was made to avoid the time limit of 3 months within which an application for judicial review should have been brought. The judicial review guidelines or rules equally provide for locus stand and this would have been the threshold before the applicants would seek to challenge actions of a party. It is an abuse of court process,” Justice Ssekaana ruled.

7.Kanyamunyu sentenced to 6 years, while his girlfriend Cynthia Munwangari is set free

Kanyamunyu’s case could be the case of the year since it had stayed for over four years since he committed the crime. On 12th November 2016, Kanyamunyu aged 45 shot dead child rights activist Kenneth Akena at Lugogo Forest Mall along Jinja road.

Although at first Kanyamunyu denied the case, before the final judgement he accepted the case and went for a traditional ritual known as Mato Oput, an Acholi term that means “to drink a bitter portion made from the leaves of the ‘oput’ tree” where he reportedly admitted to killing the deceased and was asked to pay ten cows and three goats by the elders in Acholi.

However, his pleading guilty at the local court did not get him off the hook from facing the charges as per the penal code act of Uganda becuse the case was already in the court. And on 12th November 2020, High Court Judge Justice Stephen Mubiru sentenced Kanyamunyu to 6 years in prison.

In his ruling Justice Mubiru said that since Kanyamunyu was a first-time offender and also took the victim to the hospital, the court could not life sentence him rather it accepted his bargain of six years imprisonment. And the court also reduced the sentence by 11 months, meaning he is to serve 5 years.

8..Gen Henry Tumukunde’s treason case

The independent presidential candidate is currently facing charges of treason; however. His lawyers could be doing a great work since according to City Hall Court Grade One Magistrate Valerian Tuhimbise, he is soon dismissing the case.

This is because the state prosecutors are failing to provide solid evidence pinning the former minister of Security that he was indeed carrying out something close to treason. The case was adjourned on 21 this month due to failure by the prosecution team to file written submissions as directed by the court last month. The trial will commence next year on 21 January.