ULS boss Ssemakadde raises red flag over Zeija’s elevation to Chief Justice

The Uganda Law Society has condemned the appointment of Flavian Zeija as Chief Justice, warning it threatens judicial independence and risks deepening political interference in Uganda’s courts.

Uganda Law Society President, Isaac Ssemakadde (R) has vehemently criticised the appointment of Dr. Flavian Zeija (L) as the new Chief Justice.

Kampala, Uganda: The Uganda Law Society (ULS) President, Isaac Ssemakadde, SC, has launched a blistering attack on President Museveni’s appointment of Dr Flavian Zeija as Chief Justice, warning that the decision signals a deepening erosion of judicial independence and risks entrenching political interference, corruption, and abuse of power within Uganda’s Judiciary.

In a statement released on Friday, January 23, 2026, the Radical New Bar leader described the elevation of Flavian Zeija as “a recipe for disaster,” accusing the Executive and Parliament of secretly fast-tracking the appointment through a rushed and rubber-stamped vetting process.

Ssemakadde argued that Zeija’s tenure as Principal Judge and later Deputy Chief Justice was marred by documented misconduct, judicial interference, and actions that undermined the rule of law, rendering him unfit to head the Judiciary.

According to the ULS boss, Zeija routinely acted as a “go-to fixer for the rich and powerful,” citing multiple cases in which he allegedly interfered with judicial proceedings. For example, in Imaniraguha v Uganda Revenue Authority, Zeija is accused of directing a Registrar to retract a warrant issued by the Commercial Division, prompting a public rebuke from Justice Stephen Mubiru for judicial interference.

He further alleges that in Plinth Construction v Attorney General, the Mufti Mubajje case, and other matters, Zeija removed files mid-proceedings, using administrative authority to override presiding judges and preserve the political status quo.

Ssemakadde also faulted Zeija for his role in the removal of four critical ULS appeals from the Court of Appeal’s 2025 cause list, appeals that were central to ending what the Society describes as judicial harassment of its leadership and enabling the election of ULS representatives to the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) under Article 146 of the Constitution.

“As head of the Constitutional Court, Zeija deliberately blocked an urgent application by ULS seeking to halt judicial appointments until the JSC was lawfully constituted,” the statement reads, adding that his actions allowed judicial appointments to continue “secretly and unlawfully,” including the appointment of a Principal Judge and now Zeija himself as Chief Justice.

He warned that this sequence of events raises an “obvious conflict of interest,” arguing that Zeija personally benefited from a process he declined to pause, despite its constitutional challenges.

Ssemakadde further accused Zeija of contempt toward legal practitioners, pointing to remarks made at the 3rd East African Judicial Conference in Kigali and other forums, where he allegedly disparaged lawyers while discussing mediation, plea bargaining, and alternative dispute resolution. This, the ULS said, casts doubt on his ability to foster a constructive bar-bench relationship essential to access to justice.

“Given Zeija’s integrity deficits and the appointment scandals, elevating him to Chief Justice risks entrenching delays, corruption, political interference, and bar-bench conflict, further eroding public trust and crippling justice,” he warned.

In unusually confrontational language, the ULS President vowed sustained scrutiny of the new Chief Justice, declaring that the “Radical New Bar” would continue collecting petitions on alleged misconduct and encouraging whistleblowers to come forward.

“No one is above the law, not even the Chief Justice,” Ssemakadde said, adding that the Society may mobilize direct action, including court boycotts, in pursuit of a Judiciary that serves Ugandans rather than the powerful.