Government has a duty to maintain the rule of law amidst calls for humanity

Edward Baliddawa

I have revisited the caution that the immediate former president of the Uganda Law Society (ULS), Simon Peter Kinobe, wrote a few weeks ago in the wake of the mayhem that happened on our streets as a result of the arrest of the Presidential Candidate Robert Kyagulanyi.

I must say that the observations were indeed instructive and timely having come at a time when the country needed caution and a lot of restraint. It was instructive in that it was anchored on the constitution and was reminding Government of its mandate of upholding the rule of law and order in the country.

I would have however, expected Counsel Kinobe to also highlight in the same breadth matters to do with humanity as enshrined the Constitution of Uganda.

I can't believe that the framers of our Constitution while awarding government the powers to execute its mandate, they probably for some reason forgot to point out that upholding values of humanity was equally important. On the contrary, the norm of humanity is what puts brakes on the government while executing its mandate. I believe this is why no robber is expected to be shot dead once arrested.

Equally, it is the reason why even anyone on treasonous charges is not supposed to be shot once apprehended. In fact it is within the ambit of our laws that each suspected person of any crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty.

I guess, although, this dictum doesn't make much sense in certain circumstances, it is what we as a country in our legal dispensation hold as sacred. I believe that it was crafted based on humanity. It has served us well with its abuse sometimes notwithstanding.

I would have wished that Counsel Kinobe had addressed himself in his observations to the fact that the powers that the constitution gives to Government in executing its mandate are not absolute.

Even where the Constitution puts limitations on human rights, it still goes ahead to place limits on those limitations such as being justified as a democratic society. The limitations on which Counsel Kinobe seems to have premised his caution and observations cannot pass the above test as stipulated in the Constitution of Uganda.

But anyway, as people we know how to sound drums that seek to please or tickle the ears of our authorities if it will serve the purpose of "catching the eye" of the authority. What makes Counsel Kinobe's observations interesting is that not long ago, while still serving as the president of ULS, he was known of throwing unpalatable jabs of condemnation at government for what he used to refer to as "gross violation" of human rights in the country.

Then he got himself interested in what goes on in our Legislative Assembly and when he was asked in an interview to give his opinion about our Parliament and the people who represent us, ndugu Kinobe was all over painting the institution of Parliament and the MPs as a useless bunch of individuals and that he didn't see any value at all as a country in having a Parliament which is a cabal of deal makers and toothless insensitive institution.

Those who tended to agree with his bold and cold observation applauded him and commented that at last the belligerent leaders of our Parliament had gotten someone to straighten them out legally. However, that tone of things was not to last long.

Immediately after relinquishing the coveted position at ULS to his former deputy president, one day, we woke up to read that ndugu Kinobe had declared that he was contesting in the NRM Primaries for a Parliamentary seat in his home area somewhere in areas of Bunyoro.

There was a frenzy of posts on many fora wondering what had prompted the learned counsel in eating his words about Parliament and the MPs. As fate would have it, it seems it easier for us the elites of Kampala to go around and put on a facade of very decency and being loved within our circles of peers and have this aura that actually we can easily win their trust and votes for any position that we may want to serve in, but alas!

Not with those wananchi in the villages who watched us grow up and probably know our characters from youth years. Those voters seem to have overwhelmingly rejected our former ULS President.

This might explain why in an attempt to raise his hand from the now self imposed oblivion, the lawyer decided to give out his take on what he wrote while downplaying the cardinal preambles of humanity that are very prominent in our Constitution.

We should be reminded of some elites who have written or said things that they can't defend after a cycle of events. Many of them do write or say those things either to please the powers that be at the moment or simply to get their skins off the line.

Let government exercise its full mandate of keeping the rule of law and order while at the same time upholding the principles of humanity as enshrined in the constitution.

It is a tightrope to walk, but the Constitution doesn’t expect anything less of that balance.

The author is a former Member of Parliament for Kigulu South