ON MR. OWINY DOLLO'S UNFORTUNATE, TRIBALISTIC REMARKS
I watched the Chief Justice of Uganda, Mr. Owiny Dollo referring to the people of Buganda as 'wicked lumpens' with shock. He did not stop there but went ahead to contemptuously attack the King of Buganda as an "ethnic leader," and warn that the region cannot produce a leader that will appeal to the rest of the country!
Mr. Owiny Dollo's comments, triggered by a protest by some Ugandans in the diaspora against the expenditure of nearly UGX 2 Billion to fly the late Speaker abroad for treatment yet the regime has done very little to improve healthcare facilities back in Uganda, are unfortunate and must be condemned by all citizens no matter their tribe. Only he can tell us what criteria he used to conclude that the protesters were all Baganda!
By his own admission, Mr. Owiny Dollo has spent no more than two years outside the central region since he came as a 16-year-old. He was welcomed by the region without discrimination, studied from the central region, and has served his entire judicial career from the central region. It was therefore improper and unfortunate of him to fan tribal divisions pitting the central region against the rest of the country.
Being the head of our judicial system, Mr. Owiny Dollo ought to have known better than to collectively denigrate an entire community based on the actions of a few individuals who were neither sent by nor speak for the community called Buganda. What justice, now, should the members of that community who seek relief from the Courts of law headed by him expect?
That is why I hesitate to comment much on his allegations about the National Unity Platform's involvement in the demonstration because we all remember the sheer partiality and bias with which Mr. Dollo as head of the Supreme Court handled our presidential election petition against his former client and appointing authority, dictator Museveni.
This very Chief Justice was accused of hiding the file of another Supreme Court Justice, Dr. Esther Kisaakye Mayambala! One wonders how Mr. Dollo would handle another petition filed by a Muganda presidential election petitioner, after he himself said that Buganda cannot produce a national leader acceptable to the rest of the country. What a tragedy to this nation!
What is curious is that Mr. Dollo made those remarks in the middle of a raging debate about the cause of death of the late Speaker of Parliament! By choosing to fan tribal sentiments, the Chief Justice was effectively diverting the country away from a conversation that was meant to establish the actual cause of death of the same person Mr. Dollo claims to have been a very good friend and tribesmate of. What his motive was in doing this, your guess is as good as mine.
Parliament itself which could have intervened earlier in time to save the late Speaker's life dedicated its time and resources, instead, to persecuting and hounding Hon. Zaake out of office. Once that mission was accomplished, its leaders suddenly remembered to check on the late Speaker in hospital — if only they weren't too late!
So, for the Chief Justice to suggest that 'wicked' Baganda contributed to the Speaker's death is most unfortunate.
If Mr. Owiny Dollo had any decency left in him, the moral thing for him to do would be to apologise to the nation, as well as to His Majesty the Kabaka of Buganda, whom he lied about and accused of flying in a presidential jet!
Once again, I call upon all Ugandans to continue pursuing national unity as the precursor to sustainable peace and progress for our nation.
The people of Acholi and the people of Buganda have enjoyed a brotherly relationship that was sealed very many years ago by Kabaka Mutesa II and his best friend Daudi Ocheng.
Museveni continues to use the likes of Dollo to destroy that relationship but he will not succeed.
We continue to extend our condolences to the family of Right Honourable Jacob Oulanyah, the entire Acholi community as well as all the people of Uganda on this loss.
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