Justice Esther Kisakye: Why I disobeyed CJ Owiny Dollo order to share my ruling with fellow Supreme Court judges for vetting

Supreme Court judge Esther Kisakye says she refused to shared her ruling with Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny Dollo and other Justices because the law does not require her to do so.

On March 18, drama ensued in the Supreme Court in Kampala when eight justices of the highest court in the land walked out on Kisakye.

Kisakye had insisted on delivering her minority ruling on the withdrawal of Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine’s petition.

But she could not locate her ruling file.

Her colleagues walked out on her, power and the public address system were switched off.

She accused CJ Owiny Dollo of ordering the confiscation of her ruling file, switching off of power and public address system, and commanding his colleagues to walk out on her.

Justice Kisakye says her colleagues had insisted that she shares her ruling — yet this demand had no legal basis.

“Their dissent is that I declined to circulate my ruling among other justices yet there’s no law that binds me to do so,” she said.

She added that she had decided to disobey the Chief Justice because he had failed to show cause why she should share the ruling for vetting.

“They wanted to vet my ruling before I presented it,” claimed Kisakye.

“I thought it my duty to disobey the orders of the CJ.”