High Court Judge Musa Ssekaana, the head of the Civil Division of the High Court, expressed his disappointment with the Court of Appeal for issuing contradictory judgments on similar legal disputes. He mentioned that such inconsistent decisions create challenges for lower courts in determining which precedent to follow.
During an event where he was addressing members of the Tax Appeals Tribunal in Kampala, Justice Ssekaana criticized the Court of Appeal’s practice of setting different precedents. He noted that this inconsistency led to lawyers presenting conflicting precedents in their arguments. One lawyer had suggested giving priority to the most recent decisions.
Justice Ssekaana emphasized the difficulty faced by lower courts when they encounter conflicting decisions from the Court of Appeal. He stated that in such situations, he would prefer not to follow any particular precedent to avoid potential criticism.
He also urged the members of the Tax Appeals Tribunal to avoid issuing contradictory decisions.
It is important to note that Justice Ssekaana did not provide specific examples of the conflicting decisions he criticized.
However, in the aftermath of the 2016 general election petitions, some lawyers had raised similar concerns. They pointed to a specific panel, led by Deputy Chief Justice Steven Kavuma, which upheld a High Court ruling that disqualified Nansana Municipality MP Nsereko Wakayima Musoke from Parliament. Justices Cheborion Barishaki and Hellen Obura were part of the panel.
The justices in this case agreed with High Court judge Vincent Okwanga, who ruled that Mr. Wakayima did not meet the qualifications to run for MP, as he was not a registered voter. His name of Musoke Hannington Nsereko appeared on his national identification card, while the name Wakayima was not on the voter’s register. As a result, they declared NRM’s Robert Kasule Sebunya as the validly elected MP for Nansana Municipality.
In a separate case with a panel still led by Justice Kavuma, along with Barishaki and Paul Mugamba, they ruled differently. This case involved discrepancies regarding the names of NRM’s Taban Idi Amin, the Kibanda North MP. The inconsistencies stemmed from variations between the names on the national voters’ register, national identification card, nomination form, and academic documents. His passport also displayed a different name.
Unlike the Wakayima case, the judges in this instance ordered a by-election to resolve the issue.
