I am not a cadre judge- Owiny-Dollo
The in-coming deputy Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo (R) and the outgoing deputy Chief Justice, Steven Kavuma (L) shake hands at a judges' function in Kampala recently. PHOTO BY ABUBAKER LUBOWA
PARLIAMENT: In-coming deputy Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo declared himself a “non-cadre” judge hours after he was approved by parliament to the country’s sixth most coveted office.
Parliament’s Appointments Committee also approved justices Richard Buteera and Paul Mugamba as Supreme Court judges, up from the Court of Appeal.
The sitting to approve the three nominees was largely seamless save for petitions from FIDA (The Uganda Association of Women Lawyers) that raised issues of gender equality and another from the Uganda Law Society (ULS) that proposed that the Appointments Committee should be open.
On the ULS petition, Deputy Speaker Jacob Oulanyah ruled that Parliament’s Rules of Procedure stipulate that the sittings of the Appointments Committee must be held in camera.
President Museveni last month appointed Justice Owiny-Dollo to be the new Deputy Chief Justice.
The current deputy chief justice, Steven Kavuma, is due to retire at the end of September when he clocks 70 – the retirement age.
In an August 18 letter to the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, Mr Museveni also appointed Richard Butera and Paul Mugamba as Supreme Court judges, from Court of Appeal.
Justice Owinyi- Dollo handled, among other cases, the 2010 Kyadondo Terrorism case in which 7 were convicted.
