President Museveni appoints new Principal Judge, Justice Mike Chibita sent to Supreme Court
As per the powers entrusted to President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni by the 1995 Constitution to appoint leaders, he has appointed three people including DPP Mike Chibita as justices to the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land.
These include Justice Mike Chibita, the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, Justice Percy Tuhaise, Ezekiel Muhanguzi, to Supreme Court and a new Principal Judge Dr Flavian Zeija to replace Justice Yorokamu Bamwine who is retiring from judicial service.
Bamwine is expected to sign out on the 25, December 2019, after clocking retirement age which is 65 years.
And replaced by Dr Flavian Zeija, the Mbarara Senior Resident Judge who is now awaiting approval after their names and CVs were forwarded to Speaker of Parliament Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga for approval by Parliament, next week.
“I hereby forward their names and CVs for approval by the appointments committee of Parliament,” President Museveni letter reads in part.
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The new development was confirmed by Solomon Muyita, the Spokesperson Judiciary.
“That is the information we got but the President writes to the Speaker of Parliament and not the judiciary,” Muyita said.
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Principal Judge is the third in the Judicial hierarchy after the Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice.
Justice Ezekiel Muhanguzi
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In 1977, Justice Muhanguzi began his legal career as a State Attorney and left in 1980 for private practice and returned in 2005 for public service.
Muhanguzi is currently the Chancellor of African Rural University, since 2010. In 2013, Justice Muhanguzi served as the President of Bible Society of Uganda.
He also served as the Resident Judge at Mbale High Court for four years and as the judge in the Court of Appeal/Constitutional Court.
Muhanguzi also headed the panel in the Muslim Clerics trials and at the time of his retirement from the High Court, he was the Deputy Head of the International Crimes Division since 2014.
Justice Mike Chibita
In 1988, Mike Chibita graduated from Makerere University with a Bachelor’s degree in law followed by a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre in 1989.
After, Chibita attained a Master’s Degree in International and Comparative Law from the University of Lowa, in the USA.
In 1993, Chibita worked as a lecturer of International Relations and African History at the University of Northwestern-St. Paul, in Roseville, Minnesota in the USA. And returned to Uganda in 1994, and recruited as a State Attorney, working in the Attorney Generals Chambers.
Between 1995 and 1996, Chibita worked as the Legal Assistant to the Attorney General.
Then from 1996 to 2003, Chibita served for seven years in the office of the President after being appointed as the Private Secretary for Legal Affairs in Uganda.
In 2003, Chibita returned to serve in the Office of the Attorney General for two years. From then until 2010, Chibita served at Uganda Revenue Authority in the Commissioner General’s Office as the Assistant Commissioner.
Justice Chibita who is a Judge of the High Court was appointed Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) on October 14, 2013. From that time, he served as the Deputy Head of the Land Division at the High Court.
He also served as the Resident Judge from 2010-2011 and 2011-2013 respectively at Masaka and Fort Portal High Court before.
Mike Chibita who comes from Butaleja District is married to Monica Chibita who is a Professor serving as the Dean of Journalism, Media and Communication at Uganda Christians University.
The two have five children that include four boys and one girl.
Justice Tuhaise
In 2018, Justice Percy Tuhaise was appointed as the Court of Appeal judge, but before her appointment, she served as the head of the Family Division of the High Court and as a member of the Governing Council of Judicial Training Institute.
Tuhaise served in the panel of the International Crimes Division in the case of Uganda versus Siraje Kawooya and 13 others which involved various Muslim clerics who were accused of killing rival Muslims leaders in Uganda.
Justice Dr Flavian Zeija
Justice Flavian Zeija was appointed a justice of the High Court in 2016 and served as the Resident Judge in Masaka and Mbarara Districts.
But before his appointment, he served at Makerere University Business School (MUBS) in 2007 as the head of the Department of Business Law at the Faculty of Commerce.
The Senior Presidential Press Secretary, Don Wanyama, as well confirmed the new development.
“The nominees have been sent to Parliament. The names are with the Speaker of Parliament. They should be appearing next Monday for vetting. You will get to know them,” said Wanyama.
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Wanyama says the swearing-in ceremony will be held on December, 10, which is next week.
