By Mulengera Reporters
Only hours after receiving a provocatively-worded letter from Deputy Attorney General Mwesigwa Rukutana, Investments Minister Evelyn Anite has engaged a higher gear by firing back in a one page that clearly shows her gloves are now off. And apparently, in her estimation, its time to go bare knuckles on those she perceives as standing in her way.
In her swift response, the youthful Minister implies that the contents of Rukutana’s letter have confirmed the conclusion they reached during the 20th June high level meeting at the Finance Ministry that there are some people using the AG’s office to protect a cartel of “crooked” lawyers elsewhere in government.
Anite, whose combative response we predicted in our earlier story, says the meeting was chaired by her senior Matia Kasaija and was attended by her, PSST Keith Muhakanizi and two senior Finance Ministry technocrats.
Not one to go down without a fight, Anite insists the AG must commence court proceedings with an application aimed at replacing Bemanya as UTL administrator. She discloses that Bemanya’s departure is the position of government and not just hers as a person. She says her instruction to the AG to get Bemanya out still stands and implores William Byaruhanga (Rukutana’s boss) to urgently proceed under section 172 of the Insolvency Act & Insolvency regulations 161(1). She insists Bemanya must leave and be immediately replaced by “an individual we will indicate.”
This is how the relentless politician from Koboko expresses her resentment towards Rukutana’s provocative dossier: “I received a completely offside reply from the Deputy Attorney General in regard to my instructions. I will respond to [the] litany of fundamentally flawed innuendos/opinions he listed separately. It is indeed surprising that your Deputy interpreted my communication as a request for opinion.” She adds that Rukutana’s missive points to “a common view that a cartel in sections of government is keen to have UTL liquidated and sell to themselves the strategic assets of the company and people of Uganda.”
In conclusion Anite, who isn’t the first female leader or holder of public office to publicly show disgust with the AG chambers, writes “The purpose of this letter is to implore you to have the petition to remove the administrator of Uganda Telecom filed in court without further delay.”
Besides Anite, Speaker Rebecca Kadaga went to war with then AG Peter Nyombi whose legal opinions and guidance she repeatedly dismissed as anomalous and unacceptable. She one time told the plenary session of Parliament that: “Someone please help me out. I’m suffocating. I want total freedom from the learned Attorney General.” This was after Nyombi guided saying Parliament was out of order to demand that then Premier Amama Mbabazi and other Ministers step aside after Gerald Karuhanga claimed they had been bribed by oil companies.
In almost the same period, IGG Irene Mulyagonja called a press conference to denounce what she called “misleading legal opinions” from the AG’s chambers. In her case this was after the AG guided on the best way to prosecute government officials associated with the Katosi saga and the prudence of having officials of a Chinese firm called CCICO being subjected to criminal investigations the IGG was pursuing in ACD.
And then more recently, Justice Catherine Bamugemereire had a public spat with Deputy AG Mwesigwa Rukutana accusing him of acting improperly regarding billions city tycoon Mohammed Kasasa was claiming against government regarding the Mutungo land. The two exchanged hot words live on TV until Bamugemereire stormed out of the Land Commission session insisting Rukutana must leave before there can be resumption of any inquiry business. As he walked out, Rukutana indifferently told Bamugemereire to go and hang. He told reporters he wasn’t obliged to respect the woman from Bugisu who likes treating others discourteously.
It remains to be seen how AG William Byaruhanga (renowned for resenting confrontational approach to things) will be responding. Sources close to him told Mulengera News that the stinking rich lawyer from Toro might refer the matter to the President calling on him to intervene. Watch this space for our next story profiling the UTL riches and assets Anite refers to in her latest missive. (For comments, email us at mulengera2040@gmail.com).
