EAC Secretary General defends self in a suit against him by lawyer Mabirizi

The East African Community’s Secretary-General, Ambassador Liberat Mfumukeko has defended himself in a case where he was dragged to court by lawyer, Male Mabirizi.

Mabirizi dragged the East African Community Secretary-General to court over his recent press statement in which he accused him of misusing the Community's emblem among other allegations.

The litigious lawyer said Mfumukeko’s statement exposed him(Mabirizi) to the risk of arrest, detention, restriction to his liberty, forced disappearance, judicial harassment, mob justice, citizen arrest, violence and other adverse actions of the partner state of Uganda and by non-state actors including vigilantes.

However, in his defence filed by his lawyer, Mfumukeko says Mabirizi had no right to use the community emblem which appears on an advert and as such, his issuance of the advert was an illegality that contravenes the East African Community Emblems Act 2008.

“The applicant(Mabirizi) committed an offence when he used the community emblem without the requisite permission of the Council of Ministers as is provided in Article 7(4) of the same act and as such is liable to a fine not exceeding $1000 or a term of imprisonment not exceeding one year or both,”Mfumukeko says in his defence.

The East African Community Secretary-General says whereas there is no law or regulation at the East African Community prohibiting the use of judges’ photos for advertisements, the judge’s right to privacy is guaranteed by article 12 of the 1998 Universal Declaration on Human Rights.

“The respondent’s actions of issuing a press statement aimed at averting an illegality committed by the applicant are in no way unlawful and an infringement on the fundamental and operational principles of the community.”

“The applicant’s claims that the press statement willfully or recklessly exposed him to the risk of arrest, detention, restriction of liberty, disappearance, judicial harassment, mob justice, citizen arrest, violence and other adverse actions by agencies of the partner states of Uganda and non-state actors like vigilantes are unfounded and only serve to create unnecessary alarm.”

The East African Community Secretary General argues that Mabirizi’s suit should be dismissed with costs to him.