Why Bamugemereire Land Probe Victims Are After Her Neck

By Richard Kintu

Learned Lady Justice Catherine Bamugemereire has cemented her name as Uganda’s undisputed ‘queen of the probes’. Her star in this hot seat began to rise when she successfully pulled off the KCCA Probe that left Lord Mayor Erias Lukwago badly bruised. It was not therefore surprising when the President bestowed upon her the burden of cracking up the scandal ridden land sector in the country.

Now, with her Commission of Inquiry into Land Matters having consumed up to shs18bn over a two-year period, opinion is divided on whether her efforts can be classified as commendable or utterly otherwise.

But whichever way you choose to look at it, recently matters exploded when the Deputy Attorney General (D/AG) Mwesigwa Rukutana tore into the Commission with a hard stance that left many taken aback. Rukutana’s spat emanated from concerns about respect/decorum; with either party accusing the other of failing to conduct the day’s business with mutual respect.

In the end, Rukutana, at Bamugemereire’s behest, exited from the probe equally enraged and chest thumping at a momentous victory that was muddled in an apparent egoistic endeavor from his expellers.  In today’s analysis, The Second Opinion digs deeper into this spat, highlighting its cause and why Bamugemereire’s victims want a piece of her neck:

BACKGROUND

For starters, Rukutana is Bamugemereire’s former lecturer at Law Development Center (LDC) and as such he taught the latter at the bar-course. Bamugemereire on the other hand, excelled in law and went on to become a magistrate, lecturer at universities abroad before eventually returning home and being appointed High Court Judge and later elevated to the Court of Appeal. Their Lecturer – Student background possibly explains why Rukutana constantly appealed to be respected, saying his issues with the Lady Justice have a historical bearing.

BAMUGEMEREIRE ACCUSATIONS

In his brief comment on the Bamugemereire-Rukutana spat, renowned Human Rights Advocate Nicholas Opiyo equates the two law gurus to young children fighting for their father’s attention.

“The little ‘bully child’ in the backyard faced with another bully of equal, if not worse proportion, cries foul, snots and retorts, ‘I will report you to ‘daddy,’ Opiyo opines, in apparent reference to the ‘troika’: President Yoweri Museveni, the appointing authority, on one side, and Rukutana and Bamugererire on the opposite side.

But while Bamugemereire’s work at the probe commission is not in doubt, several observers and other people who have faced her wrath have raised concerns about being intimidated. This, some like Rukutana argue, is contrary to the provisions of the Commissions of Inquiry Act.

“The Commission would be of use. However, they have left what ought to be done and they are doing what they are not mandated to do. They have no legal mandate to make orders for arrest of any person, shout at and or harass or intimidate anyone. I know the law as much as they do (if not better). I couldn’t stand that lady’s arrogance and intimidation,” Rukutana charged.

OVERSTEPPING POWERS?

And just like Rukutana, some lawyers representing powerful victims of the land probe have accused the Commission of overstepping its powers. Renowned Constitutional and Commercial law advocate Fred Muwema on behalf of his client Abid Alam, whose arrest Justice Bamugemereire caused over square miles of land in Mubende, has filed a Constitutional petition against the commission. According to Muwema, by inquiring into cases already determined like his client’s, the Commission is placing itself in an appellate position above all courts including the Supreme Court.

Another city lawyer, Peter Allan Musoke, also recently accused the Commission of attacking the judiciary in general and particular judges like Godfrey Namundi, Rugadya Atwooki and Joseph Mulangira among others. Musoke’s comments came after Bamugemereire accused judges of issuing titles in wetlands. Other lawyers who have openly criticized the Commission include Abdullah Kiwanuka and Gustone Kamugisha, with some of these since drafting petitions to the Uganda Law Society (ULS) and gathering signatures to call an extra-ordinary General Assembly of the ULS to issue Certificates of Incompetence not just against Justice Bamugemereire but other lawyers like Commissioner Frederick Ruhindi, Lead Counsel Ebert Byenkya and the Commission Secretary Dr. Douglas Singiza. The lawyers claim it is Commissioner Ruhindi, a former Attorney General, and Dr. Singiza, who have access to the Lady justice but they have failed to advise her against the ‘showbiz way’ of conducting Commission matters.

AG POWERS

Another lawyer, speaking to The Second Opinion on condition of anonymity, reasoned that it was wrong for the Commission to expel Rukutana given his symbolic importance to the commission itself. “These people should have known that the AG’s opinion is binding on all government institutions and bodies including their Commission. He is the person to defend them in court if their report is challenged so how dare you ‘dismiss’ him when he has appeared before you?” the lawyer, who is also an MP, wondered.

He cited an almost similar situation when Parliament was investigating allegations of bribery against former Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi, Ministers Sam Kutesa and Hilary Onek and also the case of NRM ‘rebel’ MPs who had been expelled by their party and it wanted them out of parliament. According to the lawyer, the then AG Peter Nyombi was against the resolution passed by Parliament demanding the resignation of ministers and yet was in support of the sacking of the MPs but when the cases went to court, Parliament tried to disregard his advice and made several attempts to represent itself in the two cases, but the Constitutional Court rejected Parliament’s overtures.

“In this case whatever the Commission does, it will have to be defended by Rukutana if he will still be in office,” the MP said.

‘VICTIMS’ FIGHT BACK

Against such a background, several ‘victims’ of the Commission have gone bare knuckles: City lawyer Vince Mugisha, whose arrest Justice Bamugemereire directed after getting dissatisfied with his answers as a witness, and also directed never step on his land until investigations are done, has already succeeded in quashing the Commission decision. Determined to go down fighting, Mugisha rushed to the High Court in Fort Portal challenging the Commission’s orders and on March 26, 2018 Justice Anthony Oyuko Ojok overturned the orders.

Businessman and NRM entrepreneur’s league chairperson Mwesigwa Rukaari of AMPROC has also succeeded in quashing the Commission decision to block his payment for land he sold to government and was supposed to be paid through the Land Fund. Justice Andrew Bashaija found that in issuing such an order, the Commission had overstepped its powers.

Recently also, powerful Ministry of Gender Permanent Secretary, Pius Bigirimana, who led some sort of revolution against corruption in the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), also sued the Commission over the same order against the Land Fund.

PROMINENT BAMUGEMEREIRE VICTIMS  

While the Rukutana-Bamugemereire spat is still hanging over our heads like a halo, the DAG is not alone; several other notable Ugandans have endured sweaty moments before the Bamugemereire Commission.

Minister Amongi

When Lands and Housing Minister Betty Amongi appeared before the Commission, Justice Bamugemereire called her ‘young lady’ and almost made the minister shed tears. The Minister was before the Commission to answer land-grabbing queries in respect to prime property along Acacia Avenue in Kololo and another one in the Old Kampala suburb.

Earlier, the Commission had summoned Amongi over three times, forcing her to seek protection from President Museveni. But the President reportedly told Amongi to appear and clear her name. It is said this attempt to report Bamugemereire to the President incensed the Lady Justice that when Amongi finally turned up, the Rubicon had been crossed.

 Gen. Kale Kayihura

Before appearing, many commentators placed bets as to whether the then all-powerful head of the Uganda Police Force would subject himself to the Commission. He was supposed to defend the giveaway of government land in Jinja, which now houses Busoga Mall, to Movit tycoon Sympson Birungi. The police had participated in a violent eviction. Kayihura was very humble before the Commission and promised Bamugemereire all the support including a full battalion of officers if she wanted. He apologised profusely on behalf of the force before he was let go.

 Hajji Swaibu Yiga Mukasa

Yiga first helped General (rtd) Caleb Akandwanaho aka Salim Saleh to ‘survey’ his land before he allegedly grabbed 1001 acres of land comprising three Parishes in Nakaseke district. He then allegedly started intimidating the locals in the six villages, the Judge was not impressed, and sought to interact with Hajji Yiga. After the judicial interaction, Yiga, who at times moved around with armed personnel and throwing his weight around using Gen. Saleh’s name, was decapitated after the Judge ordered for his arrest.

The residents were bewildered and some sneaked out of the hall to make calls in hashed voices saying “owaaye ono omukazi tasaaga. Yiga bamukutte era ffe tetumanyi kiddako wano wetuli.”

Yiga had been downsized and naively the locals thought Gen. Saleh would send in the army to save ‘his man’. Nothing happened.

Yiga, a resident of Kawempe, is an S.3 dropout, and the Commission later learnt that he just convinced a section of family members of a private mailo land owner that he was going to survey the land and get them a land title but ended up creating titles in his own name, leaving the original landlords with nothing.

Another ‘victim’ of the Commission is the Officer in Charge of Kapeeka Police station ASP Christine Ayeko Atai who had allegedly amassed wealth in the land bonanza. She too, was not spared by the Bamugemereire blitzkrieg.

Nakaseke Lands Officer

Still in Nakaseke, the Commission after hearing complaint of officers and politicians who grabbed army land and hearing from the District Land Officer Geoffrey Tumusiime, directed for his arrest. Tumusiime was viewed by many residents as Gen. Saleh’s blue-eyed boy in Ministry of Lands who was moved there for the sole purpose of enabling Gen. Saleh to acquire big chunks of land. Several residents had demanded for his transfer and reported him to whoever they thought would help but in vain. However, when Tumusiime failed to explain how he created titles on barracks land, he too was arrested. As it later turned out, both Yiga and Tumusiime confessed not to be working for Gen. Saleh.

Kaweweta Commander

In the military, a commander never makes mistakes before the junior and disobeying his order is a huge crime. However Justice Bamugemereire placed the Commandant Kaweweta Military Barracks Brig. Christopher Kazoora on the hot seat to the shock of everybody. The was after commission learnt that the barracks land was initially 360 square miles but army officials surveyed it and left out 1.5square miles as residue land which they have since grabbed.

Major Eric Kigamboha

He is a Transport Officer in the UPDF who was awarded over 85 acres of land for effectively evicting thousands of residents in Butologo sub-county in Mubende district. He was allegedly working for Milly Naava, who claimed to have inherited the land yet she is a distant relative of the real landlords. Residents like Kotilda Namata revealed how Maj. Kigamboha could deploy soldiers to their gardens and homes to ensure they don’t return. Like all the other alleged land grabbers, he too was ‘untouchable’ till Bamugemereire came knocking.

Maj. Kigamboha has since retreated to an unknown enclave, but this was not before the intervention of lands state Minister Persis Namuganza, who allegedly tried to cajole the President into buying the land for the locals, amid claims Naava was the real owner of the land.

But when Bamugemereire showed up and grilled Namuganza, the Busoga Princess, known for her ‘no holds bar’ approach that has seen her clash with among others Speaker Rebecca Kadaga and her colleagues Betty Amongi and Idah Nanataba, retreated.

Some schools of thought have since opined that Bamugemereire grilled Namuganza into silence and she has since gone undercover to the extent that she didn’t comment on the recent Bamugemereire-Rukutana clash yet she used to make press conferences to castigate the Lady Justice on almost every issue. Actually, during the grilling, Bamugemereire even ordered Namuganza to ‘sit properly’ and she obeyed.

Abid Alam

Alam is one of the most prominent investors of Asian origin; he is the owner of Alam Group of Companies and bought over 2327 hectares of land in Mubende district.

Prior to the probe, Alam’s manager Sheikh Faisal Mohammed had reportedly led a gang of armed men said to be mostly comprised of foreigners, to run riot on the contested land in Bukoba LC1, in the process evicting locals and destroying their crops.

Bukoba LC1 Chairman Charles Bukenya Mutaawe narrated how Alam’s men hunted him from wherever he would go including Mubende, Kampala and South Sudan. President Museveni had also attempted to resolve the issue and appointed Public Service Minister Muruuli Mukasa to lead a team to oversee the compensation but still nothing tangible came out.

Then Bamugemereire showed up, grilled Alam, had him arrested and detained at Wandegeya Police Station for defying the Commission’s orders. Since then there is lull of tranquil in the area.

Bamugemereire was not done in Mubende, she also sought interaction with the Resident District Commissioner (RDC) Margaret Turyahuki, for allegedly feigning ignorance about the insecurity caused by a suspected Chinese land grabber in the district.

In a show of resoluteness, Justice Bamugemereire ordered RDC Turyahuki be driven to the scene. There the RDC came face to face with the angry residents and when she returned to the hall, she was humbled and just apologized.

Ephraim Ntaganda

He is a city tycoon, owner of among other properties, the E-Tower along Kampala road adjacent to Fido Dido. Prior to the various appearances he has made before the Commission, he was reportedly ‘untouchable’ to the extent that no sane editor of any media house in Uganda could pass any negative story about him, while even those in his favour reportedly had to be vetted.

But Bamugemereire is not a newspaper editor; so she grilled Ntaganda about acquiring land titles in wetlands and forest reserves, especially those where government planned projects, allegedly in anticipation of illegally benefitting from the imminent attendant compensations.

Indeed, at one time during an appearance to answer queries about the Nakigalala forest reserve, Ntaganda persistently referred to Dr. Kasujja, a lecturer of botany at Makerere University, as Mr. Kasujja. Justice Bamugemereire couldn’t hold back: “Please refer to him as Dr. Kasujja because at least for him he sweated and earned his doctorate unlike you who just bought yours.” Ntaganda was left dumbfounded.

The others who have faced the Commission are Gen. David Muhoozi, the Chief of Defence Forces appeared in-camera; Maj. Gen. (rtd) Otafiire, who has appeared twice; Minister Fred Ngobi Gume, who appeared over Ministry of Agriculture (NAGRIC) land in Jinja and tycoon Simpson Birungi – the Movit boss who appeared to answer queries over the Jinja Aldina Visram traders’ land.

But of all the interactions Bamugemereire has had, the one with DAG Mwesigwa Rukutana, the lecturer-student spat is talk of the town.