2020: Kanyamunyu guilty, Ham/DTB case scares banks

Mr Kanyamunyu had secretly and voluntarily approached the Acholi cultural leadership and elders to reconcile with his victim’s family. He voluntarily pleaded guilty under the traditional justice mechanism mato-oput.
He proceeded to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and requested to remove his name from the criminal trial to enable him complete the justice process under the mato-oput process. He also requested for plea bargaining.

The DPP, Justice Jane Frances Abodo, and trial judge Stephen Mubiru were opposed to postponing the trial but were open to alternative dispute resolution.
Mr Kanyamunyu opted to embrace plea bargaining with the DPP lessening the murder charge to manslaughter on account that Kanyamunyu did not have prior intention to kill Akena but rather the homicide was prompted by an instant brawl between the duo.
His girlfriend and co-accused then, Ms Cynthia Munwangari, saw same charges dropped altogether and she was freed.
 
DTB/ Ham ruling panics bankers  
The head of the Commercial Court, Justice Henry Peter Adonyo’s ruling on the huge loan dispute between Hamis Kiggundu, alias Ham, Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) Kenya and DTB Uganda threatened to shake the entire banking industry.
The judge ruled that the syndicated loan which DTB Uganda extended to Ham through its sister DTB Kenya was illegal and ordered DTB to refund $23.2m (Shs84.5b) and Shs34b to Ham.
He had condemned the bank for deducting money from Ham’s accounts for repayment of loans which were lent to him illegally.

The judge accordingly ordered the bank to return all properties that Ham had mortgaged for the loan.
He declared that DTB Kenya, not being licensed to conduct financial business in Uganda, could not lend to Ham Enterprises and, therefore, the loan was irregular, null and void.
This ruling shook the entire banking industry and financial sector as the country’s entire syndicated loan portfolio estimated at Shs5.7 trillion appeared to be in total jeopardy.

The Uganda Bankers Association made an alarm for immediate review of the ruling to rescue the banking industry from Justice Adonyo’s declaration.
DTB petitioned the Principal Judge, Flavian Zeija, who intervened with instant orders to halt the refund to the businessman until the bank’s appeal in the Court of Appeal had been disposed of.
The refund was halted and the appeal is still pending in the appellate court. For the time being, DTB and other commercial banks can enjoy the breather while it lasts.    

Katureebe retires as Chief Justice
After being at the helm of the Judiciary for five years, Chief Justice Bart Katureebe retired on June 20.
His deputy, Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo, took over the envied post. Justice Richard Buteera was elevated to deputy Chief Justice to replace the promoted Dollo.
 
BoU loses case against Sudhir
In June, the Court of Appeal threw out a multi-billion dollar appeal in which Crane Bank in receivership, through Bank of Uganda (BoU), had sought to find its former owner Sudhir Ruparelia guilty of financial impropriety, which the lower court had exonerated him of.
The judgement left BoU undecided on whether to appeal to the last court or cut the losses and prepare to pay Ruparelia the costs of the suit in both the lower and appellate courts.

Crane Bank in receivership had on June 30, 2017 sued Mr Ruparelia of taking Shs397b out of the bank in fraudulent transactions.
BoU had closed the commercial bank the previous year accusing Mr Ruparelia of mismanaging it and putting depositors’ money at risk.
Mr Ruparelia denied liability and counter-argued, successfully, that Crane Bank having gone into receivership ceased to exist and, therefore, lost its powers to sue and be sued.

The judges agreed and nullified the Crane Bank suit against him and his Meera Investments Company.
But the battle is not yet over. Crane Bank through BoU has run to the Supreme Court seeking the final chance to overturn the lower courts’ decisions.
The final court of appeal has not heard the appeal.
 
Bobi Wine, Amuriat charged
As campaigns for 2021 elections gained momentum towards close of year, violence intensified, police shootings escalated and killings prevailed.
Two Opposition presidential candidates were on several separate occasions brutally arrested by police for allegedly breaking Covid-19 rules.
Mr Robert Kyagulanyi, alias Bobi Wine’s arrest in Luuka District on November 18 triggered the worst violence since the campaigns began as protests broke out in and outside Kampala. At least 54 people were killed many of whom were shot by security forces.

The Forum for Democratic Change candidate, Mr Patrick Oboi Amuriat, had earlier been arrested and charged with disobeying police orders directing him to use certain routes to reach campaign venues in Western region, which he rejected saying it was a scheme to deny him access to voters.

 EOC boss faces corruption charges
The chairperson of the Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) was in the later part of the year, summoned before the Anti-Corruption Court and charged with corruption offences.
Prosecution alleges that between November 2018 and April 2019, Ms Sylvia Muwebwa Ntambi and three others conspired to defraud the government of Shs44m.

She denied the charges and was released on bail pending her trial. The DPP ordered her interdiction, but the Solicitor General’s opinion halted the suspension from office on account that Ms Ntambi is not a public officer as per Public Service definition because she is appointed by the President.
Ms Ntambi is thus still working despite the corruption charges dangling around her neck.

EA Court throws out age limit appeal
In September, the East African Court of Justice dismissed with costs, the age limit appeal filed by lawyer Hassan Male Mabirizi, clearing President Museveni’s last hurdle to contest in 2021 General Election despite being aged above 75, the age that would have made him ineligible for re-election if the Constitution had not been changed.
 
Mr Mabirizi had contended that the Uganda government amended the presidential age limit clauses (102b) through violence and deployment of military police in and outside Parliament, among other misdeeds, which he said were unconstitutional and had sought their quashing by the regional court.
He wanted the regional court to reinstate the scrapped clause 102 (b) on the presidential age limit.

[email protected]