Mao to reconcile Ssemakaddde and Alfonse Owiny-Dollo

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister, Norbert Mao has stepped up efforts to reconcile the Uganda Law Society and the Judiciary ahead of the official retirement of Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo.

His intervention comes at a time when the bar-bench relationship in Uganda is at its worst. Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo, during the opening of the New Law Year, 2025 denied the Law Society President or the New Radical Bar from speaking at the annual event that normally attracts top officials for the Judiciary and its related institutions, officials from the Legislature, the Executive and Diplomatic Corps.

Justice Owiny-Dolllo asked the New Radical Bar and particularly, Isaac Ssemakadde to apologize to Judge Musa Ssekaana and the DPP, Jane Frances Abodo.

He threatened that the courts could deny the Uganda Law Society or its officials audience of the apology was not made  The situation was worsened after Judge Musa Ssekaana tried and found him guilty of contempt of court-related charges.

That forced Isaac Ssemakadde to self-exile. He fled the country. In March, the Buganda Road Chief Magistrate ordered the International Police to arrest Ssemakadde at the request of private prosecutors Tonny Tumukunde and Joshua Byamazima in a case related his alleged abuse of the DPP, Janes Frances Abodo.

The High Court recently ordered for stay of proceedings in that case. Recently, the bar-bench relation went into a crisis after lawyers in the Greater Masaka region boycotted court proceeding protesting that the area has only one judge.

He equated the situation in Masaka to a constitutional crisis basing on the fact that the people in that region were being denied access to justice. With the mounting animosity between the two bodies who are in essence supposed to play a complimentary role.

Nobert Mao has reached out to the Uganda Law Society proposing some sort of mediation or alternative dispute resolution (ADR) to end the standoff. Mao has suggested that the retired former Deputy Chief Justice, Richard Buteera heads the mediation.

Justice Buteera and Owiny-Dollo have been ardent supporters of the Alternative Dispute Resolution form of Justice. Justice Owiny-Dollo who retires in January 2026 has indicated that he will champion ADR back as home while in retirement.

Nobert Mao was las week hosted on an X space talk hosted by city lawyer, Ellison Karuhanga.The space attracted many senior lawyers and the Vice President of the Uganda Law Society. Among the lawyers who pleaded for an end to the current crisis was the former Nybushozi County MP, Hon Ely Karuhanga.

“The law society need to identify bridge builders and the judiciary also need to identify bridge builders. The retired deputy Chief justice can be a bridge builder” said Mao.

“I have not spoken to the law society President. But I believe that there is no reason why he cannot return to Uganda. I can tell you. It doesn’t help the government to put Ssemakadde in jail. I would advise against it. Occasionally we have such things” he said Mao revealed that here are a number of judges who feel that the relationship between the bar and the bench should be improved.

“Now I want to tell the lawyers that I don’t think this is personal between the Chief Justice and the law society. You must know that this is not the first time that he chief justice has crossed swords with the third party” he said.

Norbert Mao’s Views on the bar-bench relationship   Mao said he believes that the dispute between the New Radical Bar and the bench headed by the Chief Justice, Owiny-Dollo is now ripe for resolution.

“There was a time when it was not ripe for resolution. Everybody wanted to prove something. Nut the Chief Justice is retiring in a few months. I don’t believe he wants to retire as head of the Judiciary when he is at war with the bar” said Mao.

“The lawyers are grumbling in the corridors about how the judges are being appointed, they need to be at the new Judicial Services Commission so that they can speak about the issues that they think can improve the appointment of the best possible judicial officers” he said.

Mao has been of the closest friends to Justice Owiny-Dollo. They both served as Members of Parliament from Acholi.

Owiny-Dollo’s other closest friends was the late former Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Oulanya. Also a believer and practitioner of Alternative Dispute Resolution, Mao offered to mediate in the matter save that he had made some of his opinion on the matter public.

Can he bring Justice Owiny-Dollo to the negotiating table?  

Mao said that he is optimistic that it can happen provide that the opposing bodies think and put the country first and don’t look at pushing the conflict.

Justice Owiny-Dollo has personally equated the clash to a friendly fire fight.

“Whether it is between the judiciary and Law Society or within the law society. Or within the judiciary. All those are friendly fires. But who told you that a gun fired by a friend does not kill you? The bullet is not your friend, the person who pulls the trigger might be your friend,” he warned. He has equally stated that he does not personally keep grudges.

The Justice minister stated that he was present when the Chief Justice denied Ssemakadde audience and that he had attempted to ensure that Ssemakadde speaks.

“In my utter ignorance, I tried shuttle diplomacy. Normally the President of Uganda Law Society has a slot speak. We must accept that leadership is continuum and in school we learned about the number line. And all leaders fall somewhere along the number line. And President Ssemakadde has somewhere he falls along the number line” Mao stated.

He said the standoff might have been caused by kind of language that Isaac Ssemakadde uses in his pursuits for reforms in the bench.

”Which according to my research is called radical ruddiness. In other words using obscenities and insults as part of his arsenal for fighting for change but remember we are dealing with people who are high-ranking” he explained. Mao said his intervention is aimed at ensuring that members of the Uganda law Society don’t become a victim of this fight.

“The institution has got to be protected against all odds. I don’t want to say many things about this because there are many things we are doing in the backroom” he said. Members of the Uganda law Society have stated that the judges have weaponized the contempt of court provisions like in the incident of Judge Musa Ssekaana charge against Ssemakadde. Mao is f the view that contempt laws should not be used or rather abused.

“The contempt law are for this man Arinaitwe who wanted to strangle a judge. That is the height of contempt of court. We should note that the judiciary in Uganda had not resorted to using the contempt procedures. I don’t know how many case we have in Uganda. I don’t thinks the reach ten”

The election of Isaac Ssemakadde to the lawyers’ body was perceived by some as a protest of the young lawyers against the older generation of lawyers. However, some of the issues that Ssemakadde and his Radical Bar had been voiced by some senior counsels who are officers of court.

Some of the issues raised by Ssemakadde were documented and presented to the Judiciary or members of by Senior Counsel, John Mary M Mugisha during the 25th annual judges’ conference held in February 2024.  They ranged from the disrespect of court orders, case backlog and delayed writing and delivery of judgments, state interference and administrative letters contradicting court decisions, the disposal of cases after more than five years among others.

“Our main concern is that cases take long. To the extent that we cannot advise our clients. You cannot predict when the case will commence and when it will end. At the same time, you cannot predict when it has commenced, whether the trial will be consistent and when to expect the judgment,” Mugisha observed.  Top of Form Bottom of Form

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