Kampala, (UG):- Uganda Law Society (ULS) President, Mr Isaac Ssemakadde has been dragged to court over the recent expulsion of the Attorney General, Solicitor General, and their representatives from the Uganda Law Society Council.
The suit, filed by Lawyer Robert Rutaro in the Civil Division of the High Court, questions the legality of Ssemakadde’s controversial decision announced Monday evening.
In what he called “Executive Order Number One” in an attempt to reshape the leadership of the ULS Council, Ssemakadde, a self-proclaimed “rebel” said the removal of government representatives is a necessary move to protect the independence of the legal profession.
He argued that the positions held by the Attorney General and Solicitor General on the ULS Council are remnants of colonial influence and are incompatible with the autonomy of what he referred to as the “Radical New Bar.”
Citing the 2012 Prof Ssempebwa ULS Report, which had recommended the removal of these government officials from the Council, Ssemakadde said that “The Attorney General and Solicitor General’s ex officio positions on the ULS Council are a colonial hangover,” adding that he has lodged a constitutional petition to challenge what he described as a “repugnant relic.”
However, Ssemakadde’s executive order sparked immediate backlash from the legal fraternity, with Lawyer Ivan Okuda, a supporter of Ssemakadde’s campaign, likening the order to the authoritarian decrees of Uganda’s former dictator Idi Amin.
Lawyer Rutaro, the founder and Director at Elgon Advocates Ltd, reacted by immediately taking the legal route through the High Court to annul the ULS President’s executive order.
In his affidavit, Rutaro argues that Ssemakadde lacks the legal authority to unilaterally expel the Attorney General and Solicitor General from the ULS Council.
The City lawyer contends that the composition of the ULS Council is established by the Uganda Law Society Act, and any changes to its makeup can only be made through legislative amendments, not by personal decrees.
Rutaro further alleges that Ssemakadde’s decision is motivated by personal grievances against Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka, citing a series of public incidents where Ssemakadde openly insulted Kiwanuka for not supporting his candidacy in the recent ULS elections.
“It appears that Mr. Ssemakadde is using his position to exact revenge, ridicule, and embarrass Mr. Kiryowa Kiwanuka and other members of the ULS Council, without consulting the wider membership,” Rutaro said in his affidavit. He expressed personal embarrassment over what he described as Ssemakadde’s “erratic” behaviour, including public outbursts aimed at high-ranking officials like the Attorney General, judges, and even President Yoweri Museveni.
Rutaro therefore wants the high court to annul Ssemakadde’s executive order and issue an injunction preventing him from expelling the Attorney General, Solicitor General, or their representatives from the ULS Council in the future.
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