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KAMPALA - Court has given its seal of approval to Patrick Ayota as National Social Security Fund (NSSF) managing director.

The confirmation was made on Friday, April 19, 2024, when former NSSF managing director Richard Byarugaba’s bid to be re-instated was discarded by the Civil Division of the High Court in Kampala.

High Court judge Musa Ssekaana ruled that the appointment of Ayota was an act involving the labour minister Betty Amongi Ongom as the minister responsible for the affairs of NSSF through reporting and exercising supervisory function after following the law.

“The minister exercised her powers and followed the law as prescribed and, therefore, her decision should not be interfered with in absence of any jurisdiction or any breaches of the law. The court will not lightly presume abuse or misuse of power and will make allowance for the fact that the decision making authority is the best judge of the situation,” he noted.

The judge said the decision to appointment Ayota by the minister based on the new recommendation of the NSSF Board cannot successfully be challenged without the Board being party to the proceedings.

“This court cannot quash the appointment of Ayota, which resulted from the recommendation of the board. Such a decision would violate the principle of fairness and would amount to condemning the Board unheard in respect of their decision to appoint Ayota,” Ssekaana said.

The judge explained that the courts need to recorgnise that there is always need to justify their intervention or non-intervention in administrative matters.

“The courts constitutional role in judicial review is sometimes limited in their capacity to decide matters which admit of no generalised or objective determination. The judicial willingness to appreciate the constitutionally ordained province of administrative agencies and this is their preserve and act with restraint in assessing their decisions taken in exercise of their discretionary powers,” he noted.

Ssekaana ruled that Byarugaba has not shown that there was bias or breach of rule of natural justice in appointment of Ayota as the NSSF boss.

“The applicant was investigated by separate organs including Parliament and the Inspector General of Government not at the instigation of the minister but rather on the statutory and constitutional mandate of different government agencies.

The court heard that Byarugaba was challenging the appointment of Ayota, contending that it was illegal, since he was holding two positions of Acting managing director and deputy managing director.