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From Muhoozi's erratic posts to MP Ssegirinya’s death:  Here are our top 10 stories of January

Former Kawempe North MP, the late Muhammad Ssegirinya
 

What you need to know:

  • Rwandan-backed rebels marched into eastern Congo's largest city Goma on January 27, and the U.N. said they were supported by at least some regular Rwandan troops, in the worst escalation of a long-running conflict for more than a decade.

From Dr Kizza Besigye's refusal to take plea at the General Court Martial over its lack of jurisdiction to try civilians, suspension of Electoral Commission secretary Leonard Mulekwah and MP Muhammad Ssegirinya’s death to the arrest of journalist Agather Atuhaire and the landmark Supreme Court judgment stopping military courts from prosecuting civilians, among others, here is a summary of stories that made it to the list of our top 10 stories of January 2025;

A former aspirant in the 2021 Ntungamo woman legislative race called for help saying she was stranded in Dubai, where she sought greener pastures through a firm reportedly owned by Ruhaama East County Member of Parliament Benjamin Kamukama Katangura.
In several voice notes that circulated on social media, Winnie Twinomugisha Ndiyo was heard pleading for assistance to escape what she described as “a harrowing trafficking ordeal in Dubai.”



The death of Kawempe North MP, Muhammad Ssegirinya at Lubaga Hospital in Kampala shocked the country and the diaspora community. 
Ssegirinya who spent more time in hospital and prison than he did on the floor of Parliament died at the age of 37.
3. Journalist Agather Atuhaire arrested


Human rights activist and lawyer Agather Atuhaire was arrested as she attempted to march in Kampala over the Supreme Court's delayed judgment in a case which bore direct relevance to the jurisdiction of military courts over civilians.
Ms Atuhaire, a practicing journalist, was arrested alongside another lawyer, Godwin Toko and five other human rights activists and detained at Kampala Central Police Station before they were later arraigned in court and given bail.


Police said on January 14 that they were hunting for two suspects that fled after a foiled bank robbery at a shopping mall in Kampala on January 13.
This was after security operatives gunned down six men they suspected of attempting to rob from a bank client at Acacia Mall.

Veteran opposition politician Dr Kizza Besigye on January 14 refused to plead to the new charge of treachery before the General Court Martial in Makindye, Kampala. 
Dr Besigye alongside his aide, Mr Obeid Lutale, through his lawyers, came determined not to plead to the new charge. The treachery charge was introduced on January 13 by the State that also added Capt Dennis Oola, a third suspect onto the charge sheet. Capt Oola belongs to the Armoured Brigade of the UPDF.
A defiant Besigye boldly told the General Court Martial chairman that his tribunal lacked the jurisdiction to prosecute him and other civilians.

The Electoral Commission (EC) Secretary, Mr Leonard Mulekwah and five other election officials were suspended on allegations of involvement in irregular disbursement, utilisation and accountability of some EC funds.
The EC chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama confirmed that Mr Mulekwah was suspended to pave the way for an internal investigation to take place.

Parliament’s committee on Defense threw out the Minister for Defense, Mr Jacob Oboth-Oboth and consequently ordered him to produce President Museveni’s son, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba who serves as the Chief of Defense Forces (CDF), for questioning over his erratic posts on X (formerly Twitter) that reportedly put  Uganda's image in disrepute both locally and internationally. 
Mr Oboth-Oboth who was flanked by a delegation of top Uganda People’s Defense Forces (UPDF) led by the Deputy CDF, Lt Gen Samuel Okiding had appeared to answer questions about the 2024/25 Budget Framework Paper of the Ministry of Defense.
Gen Muhoozi later posted saying he would not appear the MPs he described as clowns whose necks had grown fat from theft of taxpayers money.



Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court in Kampala summoned Uganda Law Society (ULS) president, Mr Isaac Ssemakadde to appear in court for allegedly insulting the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Jane Frances Abodo.
 
The Chief Magistrate, Mr Ronald Kayizzi ordered Mr Ssemakadde to appear in court after finding a prima facie case against him in a case he’s accused of indecent assault.

Rwandan-backed rebels marched into eastern Congo's largest city Goma on January 27, and the U.N. said they were supported by at least some regular Rwandan troops, in the worst escalation of a long-running conflict for more than a decade.
A rebel alliance spearheaded by the ethnic Tutsi-led M23 militia said it had seized the lakeside city of more than 2 million people, a hub for displaced people and aid groups lying on the border with Rwanda and last occupied by M23 in 2012.

Ugandans erupted into celebrations after the Supreme Court nullified with immediate effect all ongoing prosecutions of civilians in the General Court Martial and the military courts which the judges described as unconstitutional.
According to the justices of the court, the General Court Martial, the Division Court Martial, and the Court Martial Appeal Court don’t exhibit “independence and fairness” while dispensing justice since they derive their powers from the High Command, yet the Constitution which is the supreme law of the land, demands a fair and impartial trial for every citizen.
President Museveni would later describe the judgment as a wrong decision before vowing not ‘abandon’ the court martial.  


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