By KT Reporter
The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has created a Private Prosecutions Liaison and Coordination Unit (PPLCU) in a bid to streamline the management of criminal case files by private prosecutors.
According to the Internal Memo, which URN has seen signed by the DPP Jane Frances Abodo, the PPLCU office is mandated to serve as the primary liaison between the Office of the DPP and private prosecutors, ensuring streamlined communication, case coordination, and collaboration on prosecutorial matters.
Abodo says that the Unit will be directly under the Department of General Case Work and will be headed by Amerit Timothy, Senior State Attorney at the General Casework Department.
“The purpose of this memo, therefore, is to direct you to provide the Head of the Unit with all necessary support and cooperation on all matters relating to criminal cases initiated by private prosecutors”, reads the April 9th 2025.
The Pioneer head of the Private Prosecutions Unit, Senior State Attorney Timothy Amerit, holds a Master’s degree in Laws (LLM) from Makerere University and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Laws (PhD) from the same University.
His educational background includes a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre (2012-2013) and a Bachelor of Laws (LLB Hons) from Uganda Christian University, Mukono (2006-2009).
Amerit also has experience in legal practice, having worked as a legal associate at Oundo & Co. Advocates (2014-2015) and as a legal assistant at AA Legal Consultant & Co. Advocates (2011-2014). He has also authored publications, including “Private Prosecutions in Uganda’s Criminal Justice System: Is it a Game Changer or Recipe for Chaos?” and “The Exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion in the Administration of Criminal Justice in Uganda.
Admitted to the Roll of Advocates of all courts of Judicature in Uganda in 2015, Amerit was also a Part-Time Tutor at Uganda Pentecostal University (Kampala Branch).
Amerit rose to the limelight after prosecuting former Makerere University Researcher Dr Stella Nyanzi before the High Court overturned a jail term that had been imposed against her for offensive communication and computer misuse offenses.
Amerit, the former Secretary General and the General Counsel of the Uganda Association of Prosecutors, also shone in the public eye after successfully prosecuting Kasolo Corpuriyaamu and others for the murder of Maria Nagirinya.
He was also the prosecutor in the bail application case of lawyer Eron Kiiza, who was recently released on bail pending appeal challenging the nine-month jail term handed to him for contempt of the General Court Martial.
Notably is also the case of Uganda vs Pastor Aloysius Bujjingo for bigamy, which is now in the constitutional Court for interpretation.
This new unit created in the office of the DPP comes at a time when there is a rise in privately instituted cases in various courts of law from lawyers and other members of the public.
Key among them is the case filed by Lawyers Joshua Byamazima and Tony Tumukunde against the Uganda Law Society President Isaac Ssemakadde for insulting the modesty of a woman (the DPP.
Buganda Road Court issued a warrant of arrest against Ssemakadde to come and stand trial in this particular private case-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
