{UAH} WHY MUSEVENI PREFERS UGANDAN LAYMEN FOR HIS MILITARY COURTS INSTEAD OF LAWYERS

Written by CHANGE OF GUARDS

Uganda's military dictator has a natural dislike for the law.  He is said to have rejected studying law at university in preference for political science.  That is why he has always been at log heads with both parliament and the judiciary.  He prefers using his majority Parliamentary Caucus for legislation which simply rubber-stamps his views that become law.  For the judiciary, he has always had his military Court Martials at hand where he is the de-facto Chief Justice.  When he launched his Bush War in 1981, it attracted some Lawyers like Kategaya, Rubereza, Tinyefuza, Muhweezi, Magara, Aliganyira, Henry Tumukunde, Kalekyezi and the former Grade Two Magistrate, Janat Mukwaya. He enacted his draconian Bush War NRA Code of Conduct as the law that guided the conduct and general discipline of his NRA.  It created Kangaroo Courts and, in fact, it was designed to ensure his dictatorial leadership of the NRA.

He has repeatedly publicly boosted that during his Bush War, he was the Chief Justice.  He always cites an incident where in 1982, he overruled the legal opinion of the Lawyer for him to sentence to death and carry out the execution of some fighters accused of murder.  Lawyer, Jim Muhwezi, had raised the issue of the victims having acted under the influence of alcohol, thus intoxication, which is a universally recognized defence in criminal law.  Museveni executed them so as to gain cheap popularity from the civilian population.  Otherwise, why didn't he impose the same punishment against Jack Mucunguzi who had shot dead Commander Hannington Mugabi.  When he took over power in 1986, he created a department of Legal Services for the NRA that was headed by Capt. Aliganyira.  A few Lawyers, some of whom had come from the UNLA, joined the department.  However, the NRA Code of Conduct continued to serve as the cardinal law for his NRA with his military intelligence as the lead enforcement agency. It was replaced by the NRA Statute of 1992.  

Despite the NRA attracting more Lawyers into its ranks during the late 1980s, they made no impact in the administration of justice within the force.  Since then, the army has enlisted more than 100 Lawyers of which almost 98% are Advocates of the High Court, not to mention the number of paralegals in uniform.  A big portion of the defense budget has been committed to training Lawyers, let alone the training offered by the Netherlands to army Lawyers.  They even earn a Professional Allowance for which a paralegal takes home a higher amount than a graduate of Political Science.  These Lawyers only act as Prosecutors, Judge  Advocates, Registrars and Defence Council in military courts.  The Directorate of Legal Services has been, and still has less role to play in the running of military courts.  This is simply because these Kangaroo Courts are more of a coercive force than a tool for justice; hence they are a strategic component of the military intelligence machinery.  

For the same purpose, no single Lawyer or Paralegal has ever been assigned to head the military courts save for the Court Martial Appeal Court which is headed by the civilian former High Court Registrar, Elly Turyamubona and the 1st Division Court Martial headed by Lawyer Colonel Sam Mugyenyi who is a former Intelligence Officer of the Presidential Guard Unit.  Despite the General Court Martial having immense jurisdiction to entertain capital offences and pass maximum sentences, including death, the Chairman and his seven man panel have no background in legal training.  

It is more devastating for the same courts to extend their jurisdiction to the trial of civilians.  Courts have repeatedly denounced the trial of civilians by military courts but Museveni has adamantly ignored those pronouncements.  Imagine a former Motor vehicle mechanics like Col. Emmy Mwesigwa (brother of Prof. Ndebesa) is heading the 2nd Division Court Martial. To ensure his grip and control of the military courts, Museveni personally appoints the Military Court members, renews their contracts, gives them financial facilitation from the Consolidated Fund and not the Ministry of Defense budget.  As Commander-In-Chief, Museveni retains the final authority on who is to be charged, withdraw of charges, convicted, acquitted, and what sentence; while at the same time being the final authority on appeals.  That is how he recently promised the people of Kisoro that he would instruct the Court Martial to withdraw charges from their own, Gen. Kalekyezi.  In the same regard, Museveni has repeatedly castigated the judiciary for upholding the law and principles of justice by citing to the judges how his military courts use the "An Eye For An Eye and a Tooth For A Tooth" in the administration of justice.  In the same regard, he has been obsessed with granting of bail by civil courts in preference for his military courts that are agents of Detention Without Trial of political dissenters and victims of torture.  

Therefore, Museveni does not assign Lawyers to head his military courts simply because he fears that by virtue of their professional training, they may not effectively serve his personal interests.  

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Rehema
Patriot in Kampala,East Africa:Assalamu Alaikum

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