Bart Katureebe:"I have served Uganda to the best of my ability"

The outgoing Chief Justice, Bart Katureebe, has said that he has served the nation to the best of his knowledge and he has no regrets.

Katureebe made the remarks on Monday while handing over office to his deputy chief justice Alphonse Owiny-Dollo at the High Court in Kampala.

Owiny-Dollo will be in charge of the office until a substantive candidate is appointed.

The Constitution demands that justices of the appellate courts (Supreme Court and Court of Appeal) retire at 70 years, High Court judges at 65 and magistrates and registrars at 60.

During the mini-ceremony at the office, Justice Katureebe told a few colleagues that he will use part of his time to venture into mediation.

Katureebe said that he is happy that he has done his part.

"I want to say I have done my best. I am sure that I made my own mistakes. I am sure I made decisions that some people didn't like and others liked but that what it should be," he said.

He appealed to all the judges in the country to always make the right decision while delivering their judgments.

Katureebe highlighted some of the achievements during his tenure which include digitization of the court processes, increasing the pay of judicial officers, construction of court premises among others.

"I am sure that with the experience of Covid-19, people are not thinking of turning away from electronic management of businesses, "he said.

He noted that after paving the way to 11 justices, he will live a happy life especially after achieving some of the key reforms in the judicial system.

During his time as chief justice, Katureebe stood by the courts of law denouncing any kind of attack on the judiciary including the time when a crowd besieged Makindye court to stop the trial of the former Inspector General of Police Gen Kale Kayihura.

The Judicial Service Commission has already conducted interviews to field the position of chief justice.

Justice Alphonse Owiny-Dollo is among the names submitted to the president for consideration by the commission.