KAMPALA - The Court of Appeal Justices Hellen Obura, Muzamiru M. Kibeedi, and Moses K. Kazibwe have concluded the hearing and disposal of criminal appeals at Masaka High Court. The Honourable Deputy Chief Justice, Richard Buteera, flagged off the session at an opening ceremony on 15th July 2024 with a clarion call to the actors involved in the criminal session, emphasizing the crucial role of recent precedents from the court in avoiding unnecessary delays in matters with settled jurisprudence.  Twenty-eight (28) Appeals were listed for hearing.

The Appeal Justices demonstrated their commitment to swift justice by delivering instant judgments in 24 of the 28 appeals listed, allowing all parties to leave the court with their signed judgments. This, along with the dismissal of four other appeals, resulted in a 100% case disposal in the session.

Two of the dismissed appeals involved cases in which the Appellant's prayer to set aside life sentences imposed by the High Court for murder and aggravated robbery was not granted. The appeals allowed mainly dealt with non-compliance with the constitutional requirement to deduct the pre-trial remand period.  The Honorable Justices exercised their powers under section 11 of the Judicature Act to re-sentence the appellants.

In a post-session meeting with stakeholders, the head of the panel, Honorable Lady Justice Hellen Obura, thanked the stakeholders for heeding the Chief Justice’s call and advice, which she stated had led to the results achieved. She also thanked the Senior Resident Judge of Masaka, Honorable Lady Justice Katamba Victoria Nakintu, and Deputy Registrar High Court Masaka, Her Worship Loe Karungi, for the support rendered. She further thanked the Magistrates, Research for extra hours writing legal briefs. The support staff were equally thanked for their role in facilitating the smooth flow of the session.

Justice Kazibwe thanked the lawyers for the quality submissions and said they reflected time and effort. Justice Kibeedi thanked the ODPP team for being “on top of their game” and called on the lawyers to invest in themselves, noting that there was always room to perform at their best.