LDC dismisses student who hired magistrate to sit exams for her

A female student at the Law Development Center (LDC) who hired a magistrate to sit exams for her has been dismissed from the institution.

The LDC examinations board said it investigated student Irene Mutonyi and found her guilty of examination malpractice.

Her dismissal followed a decision taken by the board of examiners on February 1 in consideration of “rules governing the Bar Course regarding alleged examination malpractice cases.”

According to a February 13 communication by LDC academic registrar Stephanie Lukwanzi, the board also recommended the dismissal of law students Mackline Apako and Boaz Kaawe.

The two were found guilty of possession and use of prohibited material and swapping the examination answer booklet or script with another student respectively.

"We assure the public that LDC does not condone examination malpractice and any student who is found guilty is dismissed from the Bar Course and not eligible for re-admission for any course at LDC," Lukwanzi said in a statement released on X (Formally Twitter).

LDC Lira Campus student Mutonyi became a subject of debate in July 2023 after she hired newly appointed magistrate Ammari Ssemwogerere Musa to sit an exam on her behalf.

The Magistrate disguised as a student in the name of Mukisa Anthony before he was arrested by the LDC administration and handed over to the Lira police station.

Ssemwogerere was arraigned before court in Lira and remanded to prison over charges of impersonation.

As of February 14, his trial is ongoing and only one witness has testified so far, according to LDC public relations officer Frank Obonyo.

But the embattled magistrate has since been dismissed from legal practice by the Judicial Service Commission.

Chief Registrar of the Judiciary Sarah Langa Sui maintains that “integrity is the bedrock of the judiciary and therefore has zero tolerance to unethical professional practices.”