There are majorly two ways in which Justice Andrew Bashaija’s civil trial of Brian Atuheire’s case could save and strengthen foreign affairs Minister Sam Kutesa and the entire NRM government. Damaging as it could be, the public trial gets Kutesa out of the woods in ways ordinary citizens may not easily comprehend. One it’s an opportunity for his employer the GoU to do PR by indicating to the international community that impunity is never tolerated in Uganda as seen in the exhaustive court trial to which Kutesa, powerful as he is, has been subjected. That arms President Museveni with something good to say to world leaders and international media should they get chance to sit him down and interview him on a range of things including the Kutesa alleged $500,000 bribe from Chinese lobbyist Patrick Ho. Secondly, it helps deflate pressure Kutesa and Museveni were about to face in Parliament where MPs have been insisting on commencing censure proceedings on grounds that even mere allegations against Kutesa is embarrassing and denting enough to the image of the GoU his employer. Now should MPs insist on taking that direction in the new year (having rejected AG William Byaruhanga’s clearance of SK has not good enough), Kutesa supporters or even the executive along with the Speaker will say the matter breaches the subjudice rule since Principal Judge Yerokam Bamwine has allocated a judge to hear Brian Atuheire’s civil suit seeking to compel DPP Mike Chibita to commence criminal proceedings against Kutesa. Mind you Brian Atuheire, whose inadvertent actions could help Kutesa escape, is an FDC diehard supporter being the Chairman Youth League in his Kanungu district. All this, Kutesa supporters will argue, makes the court proceedings very credible and sufficient to put the matter to rest. But media analyst Tamale Mirundi says whatever court does will only give SK psychological relief locally but won’t take away the pressures of him not being comfortable to freely fly out to numerous world capitals especially in the Western world.
