The Civil Division of the High Court has dismissed a case in which two individuals sought to have officials from Uganda’s fisheries ministry, including State Minister Hellen Adoa, pay them UGX 3.6 billion in compensation. The plaintiffs, Hassan Omari and Violet Adhiambo Ooko, claimed that their fish had been illegally confiscated by the ministry officials.
Other defendants named in the case included Captain Musa Mugogo, who serves as the commandant of the Fisheries Protection Unit under the Uganda People’s Defence Forces, Joyce Ikwaput Nyeko, the former director of fisheries resources at the Ministry of Agriculture, Innocent Mugabi, an inspector in the fisheries directorate, the Attorney General, and the Uganda Revenue Authority.
In his ruling dated October 11, 2024, Justice Musa Ssekaana dismissed the suit on the grounds that the plaintiffs failed to provide sufficient evidence. The judge stated that Omari and Ooko did not prove that the fish in question was not immature or that it came from Ugandan waters, as required by law.
Additionally, Justice Ssekaana pointed out that the plaintiffs lacked proper documentation, such as fishing permits or licenses, to show that they were authorized to deal in the large quantity of fish, valued at UGX 2.5 billion. The judge emphasized that the fish had been confiscated and later disposed of under a court order in accordance with the Fish Act, and that the officers involved were simply performing their duties.
The judge further observed that the lawsuit appeared to have been filed with the intent of harassing the defendants, who are government employees acting in their official capacities. He noted that there was no personal motivation behind the officials’ actions, and that they were merely enforcing the law when they impounded the fish.
Justice Ssekaana also raised doubts about the financial aspects of the plaintiffs’ claims. The court found it hard to believe that UGX 800 million had been declared at customs, particularly given that the individual who allegedly paid this sum had traveled from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to make the payment in Uganda. The judge remarked that the story of how UGX 800 million was transported and stored in four trucks, with UGX 200 million per truck, seemed implausible.
As a result, the court ruled that the case be dismissed, and the defendants were awarded costs.
