Muwema & Company Advocates owned by controversial city lawyer Fred Muwenda has floored Chinese Construction Firm in the Shs6bn legal battle.

Muwema’s law firm through their lawyers led by Mulema Mukasa of M/s KSMO Advocates ran to Court seeking a declaration directing Chinese Construction firm China Railway No.3 Engineering Group of Companies Limited to pay legal fees for representing them in several matters.

In an affidavit sworn by Robert Friday Kagoro,Muwema and team revealed that in 2021, his law firm received instructions from the Chinese firm to pursue a procurement review of the decision of the Administrative Unit of Hoima Town Council and the Public Procurement Disposal Authority (PPDA) Appeals Tribunal for construction of roads in the municipalities of Kasese, Hoima and Fort portal where they were declared unsuccessful bidder.

He explained to Court that even though his law firm pursued the instructions, prepared and filed the application for administrative review of the evaluation process on behalf of the Chinese firm and lost the application, they were instructed by the same firm to challenge the decision of the Town Clerk to PPDA. But they again lost until they were instructed to withdraw the appeal.

Kagoro stated that after withdrawing the appeal, his law firm wrote to the Chinese firm demanding for a payment of Shs6bn as contained in the itemized advocate-client bill of costs as fees for legal services.

The Chinese firm failed to pay the monies protesting that they never instructed the law firm to represent them in the said legal matters through an affidavit sworn by Wang Junbo the managing director of the Ugandan branch.

He added that after losing the bidding process, the firm released Shs150m to Consultants namely Eng. Joseph Mbazzi and Eng. Martin Wanda who were the ones to pay the legal fees to the lawyers since they are the ones who hired the lawyers to provide the legal expertise.

Wang told Court that the only agreement his firm entered in with the law firm was during the construction of Kanoni-Sembabule Villa Maria Road and they were supposed to pay them only Shs3m not Shs6bn as they claim.

However, in his affidavit, Mbazzi told Court that the Shs150m paid by the Chinese Firm to them was not part of the legal fees that was supposed to be paid to lawyers.

He further revealed that when they were signing the Consultancy agreement, it was agreed that the Chinese Firm pays for legal fees.

In his determination, Justice Wamala explained that it is clear in law that a duly authorized agent can issue instructions to an advocate.

He added that where an agent acts on behalf of a disclosed principal, the agent does not attract personal liability unless exceptional circumstances are raised.

He however disclosed that when it comes to the issue before him, there was no exceptional circumstances directing the Chinese company to pay the costs.

The judge further stated that the law firm has satisfied him and it is entitled to being granted leave to have their advocate-client bill of costs of Shs6bn taxed by the tax master of the Court.

The judge also directed the Chinese firm to pay the costs of the said application.

By Sengooba Alirabaki

Internal Affairs Senior Minister Maj. Gen. Kahinda Otafiire has confirmed that President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has picked interest in and directed him to lead investigations into allegations that there is a group of people including police officers involved in and facilitating human trafficking of desperate Ugandans.

Otafiire revealed that investigations will be expanded not only to police officers but other Ugandans especially politicians since preliminary investigation have shown that they are the biggest beneficiaries from the vice.

Highly placed Security sources told theGrapevine that Museveni was briefed that a number of people connive with police officers who fake their arrests, undress and handcuff them and place them in police cells where they take their photos and record them on video crying for help.

This is presented as evidence of torture from Museveni’s government because of their support for the opposition.

Sources divulged that police officers not only stop at faking arrests and detention, they also fake police references and police bond papers showing that the said person has pending criminal charges in Uganda.

After getting police support, the said Ugandans connive with the opposition political parties especially National Unity Platform (NUP) who give them recommendation letters after paying some money which they use as evidence when they are applying for visas and other travel documents to go and seek political asylum in European countries, America and Canada among others.

Museveni was briefed that currently, Uganda is one of the leading countries when it comes to people asking for asylum based on hostile politics back home.

“The situation these police officers created in connivance with asylum seekers placed President Museveni’s government in bad light because it shows that Ugandans are not happy with his leadership and he is using a high hand to lead them,” a source said.

Maj. Gen. Otafiire also confirmed that human trafficking of Ugandans gives Uganda a bad name on the international scene and it is going to become very difficult for serious Ugandans who want to travel abroad for education, medication, research to be given documents to travel in those countries because of fears that they will disappear in those countries.

During the briefing, Museveni was given a detailed report narrating how former CBS radio presenter and comedian Patrick Mujuuka connived with police officers to get documents he used to secure a visa that helped him to go to the United States of America.

Sources claim that Museveni was told that Mujuuka alleged that his life was in danger because Museveni’s government wanted to finish him for being a staunch supporter who uses his radio position to promote National Unity Platform (NUP) and former presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu (Bobi Wine).

“The explanation and documents helped him to get an interim stay in the United States and he is getting good money through doing a number of jobs,” a source said.

However, other sources at CBS radio said that Mujuuka decided to run to the United States because his job at CBS was threatened so he had to plan early before being fired permanently.

The issue of trafficking Ugandans comes at a time when former NUP Chief moblizer Sulaiman Kidandala is holed up in South Korea facing charges of trafficking Ugandans into South Korea.

If convicted, he is likely to be sentenced to 15 years imprisonment.

There is also a group of concerned citizens who petitioned the Canadian Premier Justine Trudeau to review the application filed by Ugandans who seek asylum based on political persecution claiming that many of the applications were based on false grounds.

Senior presidential advisor on media Joseph Tamale Mirundi also twisted the issue of human trafficking revealing that majority of Ugandans taken for greener pastures are sold to business people in different countries so that their internal organs are harvested and sold at a high price.

He revealed that Museveni is also investigating allegations that powerful people in his government in involved.

He explained that Museveni is going to be very tough on people who are trafficking Ugandans because for the last one year, he is on the drive of cleaning his name.

Such allegations have resulted into sanctioning of top government officials by United States, Canada, United Kingdom and other European countries.

Minister Otafiire said that the long arm of the law will catch any one involved in human trafficking of Ugandans and police officers will be expelled from the force with disgrace.

However, shadow foreign affairs Minister Muwada Nkunyingi rubbished Otafiire’s allegation that NUP is involved in human trafficking. He threatened that very soon, he will table on the floor of parliament the names of powerful government officials involved in the said crime.

He further explained that those government officials hide under labour exporting companies to traffic Ugandans and sell them into slavery abroad.

Ronald Muwenda Mutebi the Kabaka of Buganda recently warned youths to be very careful with people who entice them with ideas of going abroad to work.

The King warned that some of these people harbor bad intentions against them because they are only looking at how they can financially benefit from them.

By Sengooba Alirabaki

Security at Mulago hospital cancer institute was beefed up after controversial city tycoon Godfrey Kato Kajubi was admitted very sick.

Highly placed sources at Luzira Murchison Bay hospital revealed that early this month, Kajubi was referred to Mulago cancer institute for more medical attention after his health condition went out of control.

Last year, Kajubi was diagnosed with cancer and he has been getting treatment from both Murchison Bay hospital and Mulago cancer institute until his situation worsened.

theGrapevine reporter was denied access to Kajubi because the Hospital security was tense compared to previous days but we managed to see him from a long distance.

Sources said that Kajubi no longer manages himself and he is moving in a wheelchair.

“The problem with Kajubi is he believes in witchcraft so much, so whenever he felt sick, instead of telling the prison’s authority so that he is taken to hospital, he claims its witchcraft. So the cancer was discovered at a very dangerous stage,” a source at Luzira Upper prison said.

He added that every Wednesday, Kajubi used to go with other inmates who believe in witchcraft at the place called Mpanga and they sat under a very big tree singing and enchanting.

He added that Kajubi is a very desperate man because of the huge amount of money he has been spending on fraudsters who have always promised that they will help him to get pardon from President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

In 2012, Kajubi was sentenced to life imprisonment by the High Court Criminal Division on charges of murder and the Supreme Court confirmed the sentence.

Kajubi was convicted for killing 12-year-old Joseph Kasirye and prosecution produced evidence that Kajubi took Kasirye’s head and genitals to cleanse his real estate business which was struggling.

He denied the charges claiming that his personal witchdoctor Umar Katerega and his wife Mariam Nabukeera are the ones who murdered Kasirye.

However, it was discovered that Kajubi facilitated the murder and was present at Kayugi village in Masaka district when Kasirye was being sacrificed and his head and genitals cut off.

Kajubi rushed to the East African Court of Justice to challenge the Supreme Court decision of life imprisonment while also strategizing on how to convince President Museveni to pardon him.

By Sengooba Alirabaki