Kawukuumi Remnants? High Court Judge accused of failing President Museveni’s project to clean Police of rogue officers

KAMPALA, Uganda: Lady Justice Esther Wolayo has come under fire for allegedly helping the Director of Logistics in the Uganda Police Force, Godfrey Bangirana to illegally hold onto the job, the Investigator exclusively report.

This is after Wolayo skipped the hearing of an application that seeks to have Bangirana temporarily leave office as court investigates how the under-fire senior police officer managed to accumulate wealth which is reportedly traced to trillions of money which is allocated to his docket.

The Judge’s consistence on skipping the hearing has been interpreted by the complainants as a calculated move intended to keep Bangirana in office as he maneuvers to have his expired contract renewed by his god fathers in and outside the Uganda Police Authority.

Her Worship Wolayo had herself set aside yesterday (November 24) to hear an application seeking to have Bangirana temporarily leave office pending the full investigation. But she caused a commotion by opting to reportedly go for a conference in Munyonyo instead. She had however handled court cases in the morning, before sending a Clerk to report how she would be attending a conference. As if on cue, Bangirana did not turn up in court as mandatorily expected.

The Judge’s decision has left Isaac Maado, the complainant in the case chocking with anger. He is wondering as well, whether the judge is not up to the mischief of keeping Bangirana in office past his contract. Isaac is the Administrative Secretary of the Uganda Young Democratics (UYD), a grouping of youth allied to the Uganda’s oldest party, DP.

“It is the Judge herself who fixed the hearing of the application for today. She has instead chosen to go for a conference. Her intention is to deny us the right to justice. But we shall not waver in our fight to rid the Uganda Police Force of Kawukuumi (rogue officers),”Maado declared. An emotional Maado said it is wrong for the Court of Justice to keep Bangirana in office yet he has allegedly ‘stolen’ public money on a grand scale. The judge pushed the case to November 14.

Before Maado went to court, Parliament had handled Bangirana issue of accumulation of what MPS call illicit wealth and the one of overstaying in office. In one of the charges, Bangirana is accused of blowing billions of money on repairing a Police Chopper that was well enough to buy a brand new one.

The MPs recommended that the man be relieved of the job. Nevertheless, Bangirana has been holding on the job even when the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Okoth Ocholla is of the view that he should have left. It is heavily said that Bangirana has got godfathers in government who told him to ignore the calls to leave whatsoever.

While President Yoweri Museveni is on record vowing to rid Uganda Police of rogue characters, he only managed to swing the axe over the then Inspector General of Police, Gen Kale Kayihura’s head, plus locking up a handful of his minders. That the President isn’t raising a finger against Baingana amidst the public uproar regarding handling of police funds, is a matter that is baffling many a Ugandans.

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Stephen Kasozi Muwambi: Mr. Stephen Kasozi Muwambi is a seasoned crime investigative writer, majoring in judicial-based stories. His two decades’ experience as a senior investigative journalist has made him one of the best to reckon on in Uganda. He can also be reached via [email protected]