Contradictory Boss!  PJ Zeija Scores In Our Goal, Deploys Judge Mubiru To Mbale To Handle New Criminal Session after Lazy Judge Writes 8 Judgments In Record Time

Principal Judge, Dr Flavian Zeija has shot in his own goal, deploying Justice Stephen Mubiru to Mbale to handle a new criminal session, crediting the judge’s work ethic, exemplifying the boss of the commercial court is a rarest species of judges who can be counted on to handle big assignments given to him at short notice and at a time very close to festive seasons.

Before leaving for Mbale to handle the fresh assignment, Judge Mubiru had written eight judgments in a record time of two days, rubbishing Zeija’s claims, and depicting the former as a lazy judge.

This comes less than three weeks after Zeija wrote a deliberately leaked missive,  attempting to disguisedly paint Mubiru in a lazy judge’s colors.

The Principal Judge stated in the disguisedly highly critical missive, how Mubiru was carrying the highest number of undelivered judgments, totaling 170 in all, signifying the judge’s alleged laziness albeit disguisedly. 

Judicial Turmoil

Zeija, subsequently, directed Mubiru not to take on any new case before delivering the pending judgments quoted in the missive within 60 days.

The dismissive quickly boomeranged on Zeija, attracting untold wrath from the Uganda Law Society plus members of the public, telling the author to stop disparaging the most hardworking judge in Uganda currently simply because, the critics said, the addressee had written a judgment previously, telling the addressor to stop giving orders to judges whose effect, the critics submitted, was to interfere with the independence of judges in the course of their judicial work.

For the record, all this debacle was sparked by a strongly worded missive Zeija had written to a female deputy registrar, directing her to overturn her own ruling, directing for the attachment of Uganda Revenue Authority’s accounts for failure to settle a court judgment in favor of businessman, John Imaniraguha.

On being petitioned as the boss of the commercial court, the fearless Mubiru counseled his boss, Justice Zeija, telling him that he lacked the powers to direct any judicial officer to change his or her judgment, advising the principal judge that judgments once passed, can only be appealed and not changed by judges on whims of their bosses.

Zeija’s Retreat

A fearless Mubiru then ordered the female deputy registrar to go ahead forthwith and restore the ruling the Principal Judge had earlier ordered to change in favor of the Uganda Revenue Authority.

After coming under a lot of condemnation raised by the public and private lawyers following his missive to Judge Mubiru, a subdued Zeija quickly called a presser, explaining how he had not only singled out Mubiru for attack over delayed judgments, giving other judges in a similar predicament, stating how he had also similarly directed them to write and deliver delayed judgments as he has done in the case of judge Mubiru.

In dispatching him to Mbale to handle a new criminal session going forward, Zeija evidently and obviously admits Judge Mubiru is a very committed and workaholic judge capable of taking on new assignments on short notice amidst a lot of ongoing assignments and even on the verge of very important festive Christmas season in which the judge has big vested interests being a good practicing Catholic person.

Judicial Integrity Unveiled

In accepting to go to Mbale and at the time he was assigned to go, Mubiru proves himself to be an humble judge ready to respect his bosses much as he is also not ready and willing to blindly and unquestionably respect and follow unlawful and illegal orders even when those orders have been issued by his bosses. 

In the next story series, the Bulletin Media website is going to demonstrate and show how and why Justice Flavian Zeija doesn’t match Judge Stephen Mubiru in relation to the work ethic and judicial work accomplished even if one is the boss of the other and therefore it is believed the boss could have been elevated by the appointing authority above the junior depending on the basis of boss’ excellent work ethic and in relation to the judicial work accomplished by the boss as and when compared to the junior. 

Intently watch the space…