The Kampala famous businessman Hajji Hamis Kiggundu the proprietor of Ham Enterprises Limited and Kiggs International Uganda Limited has pleaded to the Constitutional Court to stop Diamond Trust Bank (DTB) Uganda and Kenya from auctioning his multimillion empire until the determination of his petition he filed through his lawyers led by Fred Muwema.
In his affidavit, Kiggundu asked court to issue an order of permanent injunction restraining the banks, their officers or agents from acting upon or enforcing the orders of the Supreme Court which dismissed his appeal in the Shs.120bn case with costs.
He further wants the Constitutional Court to issue an order directing the Supreme Court to expunge the proceedings of his lost appeal from the public records of Uganda.
He further wants court to order and direct the Supreme Court to hear his pending application which was considering dismissal of the entire DTB Bank case on grounds of admission that his loan transaction was illegally issued.
He also wants his application be given to a panel of independent and impartial justices at the Supreme Court.
In his petition, Kiggundu accuses Chief Justice Alfonse Chigomoy Owiny Dollo of arm twisting other justices on the penal who included; Justice Faith Mwondha, Justice Percy Night Tuhaise, Justice Mike John Chibita, Justice Stephen Musota by claiming that they were in total agreement with his lead judgment that dismissed his appeal which was not true.
He explained to Court that Justice Dollo signed his lead judgment on 06th June, 2023 and other justices on the panel signed theirs on 13th June, 2023 which is a difference of 8 days.
He maintains that this was an act of willful perjury which tainted and invalidated the judicial process of writing a judgment and thereby rendered it impugned.
He further claims that Chief Justice Dollo’s actions violated the panel mandate rule to hear and judge upon the appeal at the time insisting that the issued judgment is not legal as it reflects uncoordinated and absolute failure of exercise of judicial power by the Supreme Court which contravenes Articles 2, 28, 44, 126. ‘131 and 132 of the constitution.
Hajji Kiggundu claims that the Supreme Court judgment was delivered without hearing the aforesaid applications which would have impacted on the decision of the Court with the result that he won the case instead of violating his non-derivable right for a fair hearing guaranteed to him under Article 28 of the constitution.
He wants the Constitutional Court to declare that the actions of the Supreme Court to deny his people permission to attend court hearing of his pending application was illegal and exhibited the judicial bias which went against the basic principles of judicial conduct of independence, impartiality, integrity.
In 2019, Kiggundu filed a petition in the Commercial Division of the High Court challenging the legality of credit facilities he allegedly got from the bank.
He sought orders to recover Shs34,295,951,553/= and USD 23,467,670.61 which had been unlawfully debited from his bank accounts and he successfully won the matter but it was overturned by the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court which directed that the loan transaction between the bank and Kiggundu was legal.
The Supreme Court returned the matter to the Commercial Division of the High Court and directed the presiding judge only to deal with facts of the matter not legality because it was already resolved which Kiggundu challenged.
The banks were sued together with the Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka whom Hajji Kiggundu accused together with his K&K Advocates partner Edwin Karugire of using their political influence and relationship with President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni’s family to intimidate judges so that the banks who are their clients defeat him.
The respondents have ten days to file their defense from the date when they were served with the petition.
However, highly placed sources at the Commercial Division of the High Court told media that the head of the Division Justice Stephen Mubiru is the one who is going to preside over the famous HAM case.
Other sources at K&K Advocates disclosed that very soon, they are going to file their bill of costs to the Supreme Court because they want Kiggundu to pay them before hearing of the main case at the High Court kicks off.
DTB Bank has also finalised the process of auctioning Kiggundu’s properties including his home, Ham Shopping Grounds buildings, Ham Towers on Makerere Hill opposite Makerere University main gate and other plots of land and buildings.
Knowledgeable sources in court also told media that it is going to be very difficult for Hajji Kiggundu to secure an order stopping the auction of his properties in the constitutional court because currently, the court is in vacation and a directive was issued recently to justice Geoffrey Kiryabwire the administrator at the Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court to first deal with old petitions before touching any new case.
That’s why celebrated city lawyer Caleb Alaka has not yet secured a court order stopping the Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court from proceeding with the criminal trial against his client Agnes Nandutu, the junior Minister of Karamoja Affairs who is battling with the offences of stealing iron sheets which were allocated to the poor people of Karamoja region.
Other commercial lawyers who talked to the media stated that Kiggundu filed the Constitutional petition to buy time to negotiate the means of paying his debt because since the trial began in 2019, he has not been servicing his loan as required and currently the interest is very high.
