The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
Kampala, Uganda | GODFREY SSALI | The Constitutional Court has ordered Uganda’s parliament to pay Sh50m to High Court Judge Joseph Murangira for injuring his reputation by making a report against him without giving him a fair hearing.
This follows a consent judgement he entered between a private company Beach Side Development Services and National Forestry Authority on September 05, 2009, where he awarded Beach Side damages of over $1.6 million.
However when the said award was presented to the Attorney General for settlement by the then Water and Environment Minister, Justice Murangira was summoned to appear before PAC on September 07, 2012 but declined to appear, prompting PAC to make a report against him which was adopted by Parliament in 2013.
Now Five Justices led former Deputy Chief Justice Steven Kavuma ruled that the stand that Justice Murangira took not to appear before PAC was right since he was going to be subjected to proceedings that were unconstitutional.
They noted that PAC’s purported observations and recommendations that sought to question how a judicial officer arrived at his decision was an attempt to control, direct and interfere with the independence of a judicial officer in exercise of his judicial function.
Its against this background that the justices deemed it fit to award Justice Murangira damages of Sh50m, for the negative publication based on unconstitutional Parliamentary process that caused him inconvenience, anguish and injury.
