By KT Reporter
Justice Fredrick Egonda-Ntende, one of the longest-serving members of Uganda’s Constitutional Court, has openly expressed concern and embarrassment over delays in hearing constitutional petitions, delays he says tarnish public trust in the judiciary.
In a concurring judgment on a case challenging prolonged remand periods for criminal suspects, Justice Egonda-Ntende noted that even the Constitutional Court, of which he is a member, has failed to adhere to constitutional timelines.
The petition, filed in 2015, took a full decade before it was finally heard and disposed of in 2025. The case involved five petitioners who had spent between three and six years on remand awaiting High Court trials.
He described the delay as a serious breach of constitutional obligations, emphasising that the court must hear all matters challenging the legality of laws under Article 137 “as soon as possible,” even if that requires suspending other pending cases. He stressed that in this instance, the court itself had not respected the Constitution and had joined those institutions that show little regard for its provisions.
While the court unanimously ruled that extended detention before trial is unconstitutional, the lead judgment, penned by Justice Moses Kawumi Kazibwe, offered no tangible remedies for the petitioners, citing a lack of jurisdiction.
Justice Egonda-Ntende argued that this left the petitioners in a state of “triple jeopardy”: first, enduring unconstitutional delays in their original trials; second, suffering further delay by the Constitutional Court; and third, receiving a symbolic victory with no effective relief.
The justice warned that continued noncompliance with constitutional mandates risks eroding public trust in the judiciary. He urged the Constitutional Court to lead by example, emphasising that respect for constitutional timelines is crucial to restoring confidence in Uganda’s legal system.
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