By Otim Nape
A lot of confusion has resulted from the ruling High Court Deputy Registrar Sarah Langah issued on 15th March 2018 following an application by Kibuli SS seeking an interim order restraining facebook bully Leonard Egesa from publishing anything about the school until the main application seeking temporary injunction is heard and disposed of. Along with deputy head teacher Mohammed Kamulegeya, who is also a lawyer as well, the school Board of Governors commenced civil proceedings against Egesa whom they accuse of posting numerous defamatory attacks on his facebook page. In her ruling, Langah finds that there was no need to grant such an order since Egesa’s able lawyer Nicholas Opio had already committed to ensuring his clients refrains from posting anything until the suit is conclusively heard. While faulting the applicants (the school and Kamulegeya) for failing to demonstrate any imminent danger they faced in case Egesa isn’t restrained from further publications, the learned registrar states thus: “Therefore to grant this application would be to grant an order in vain and for academic purposes based on purely speculation. Counsel [Nicholas Opio] for the respondent [Egesa] is on record clearly stating that there is no further publication. In light of the foregoing, this court therefore finds that this is not a fit and proper case for the grant of the interim orders sought.
The application is accordingly dismissed and each party will bear its costs.” This remains a win for the applicants because they still got what they wanted which is the court-certified undertaking by his lawyer that Egesa won’t be posting any further derogatory stuff about the school on his facebook account. Ironically basing on the same ruling, which we hereby wholly publish as part of this news story, some of the stakeholders had erroneously concluded that Egesa was finally off the hook and that the case had entirely been dismissed. This is not the case; this was just an application besides the main suit which is M/cause number 84 of 2018 that still stands. It’s that very case that court will have to decide upon establishing Egesa’s liability for the defamation that the plaintiffs (school & Kamulegeya) claim he committed against them. For comments, call/text/whatsapp us on 0703164755!
