Supreme Court issues production warrant for Kazinda

KAMPALA - The Supreme Court has issued a production warrant directing officers in charge of Luzira Maximum Prison to produce former Office of the Prime Minister principal accountant Geoffrey Kazinda in court today (January 12, 2026) at 2:00pm for the hearing of his appeal.

The warrant, signed by Supreme Court Registrar Thadius Ayebare Tumwebaze on January 9, 2026, orders that Kazinda be produced in court without fail.

“You are hereby directed to produce Kazinda in court for the hearing of his case,” the production warrant reads in part.

The development comes amid Kazinda’s petitions to several law enforcement bodies, including Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo and the Uganda Law Society (ULS), over what he describes as an inordinate delay in delivering judgement on an appeal arising from corruption-related cases against him.

In 2020, the Constitutional Court ruled that Kazinda’s continued prosecution on similar corruption charges amounted to double jeopardy and ordered his immediate release.

However, the Attorney General appealed against the decision, prompting the Supreme Court to issue a stay of execution of the Constitutional Court orders, pending the outcome of the appeal.

As a result of the order for stay, Kazinda has spent five years in prison awaiting the Supreme Court’s decision.

In a petition dated December 17, 2025, addressed to Supreme Court administrator Justice Lillian Tibatemwa-Ekirikubinza, ULS asked the court to urgently conclude the matter, saying justice delayed risks eroding public confidence in the Judiciary.

“We appeal to your Lordship to ensure that this matter is handled with the urgency it deserves for the ends of justice to be met and to restore public confidence in the Judiciary and the Supreme Court in particular,” ULS vice-president Anthony Asiimwe stated.

The ULS petition followed appeals from Kazinda’s family, who reportedly felt frustrated by the prolonged court process. The ULS cited its mandate under Sections 3(c) and (d) of the Uganda Law Society Act as the basis for its action.

Kazinda is currently serving a seven-year sentence for illicit enrichment, a conviction he believes could be invalidated should the Supreme Court uphold the Constitutional Court ruling.

According to the petition, the Supreme Court granted the Attorney General’s application for a stay of execution of the Court of Appeal’s orders, pending an intended appeal, which was eventually filed six months later. 

Kazinda argues that the development reinstated trials against him for corruption-related charges that had already been discontinued by the Constitutional Court.

He also expressed concern that Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo, who sat on the panel that heard the matter, is due to retire in January 2026 before the judgement is delivered.

The court first heard the appeal on November 9, 2021, but the panel was later reconstituted following the death of Justice Stella Arach-Amoko, prompting a fresh hearing on July 11, 2024.

The ULS also noted that by the time the Constitutional Court delivered its decision, the Court of Appeal had already quashed two of Kazinda’s convictions, for which he had served eight years.

According to the petition, after being convicted on June 19, 2013, of embezzlement, conspiracy to defraud, fraudulent false accounting, forgery and uttering false documents, Kazinda was sentenced to five years in prison.

However, Kazinda appealed against the Anti-Corruption Court’s decision, and the Court of Appeal set aside both his conviction and sentence, while he was still facing trial on other corruption-related charges.

Kazinda lamented that despite his deteriorating situation, he has failed to secure relief after engaging the registrar of the Supreme Court for eight months.

Last month, Kazinda also petitioned Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo seeking leniency, arguing that after more than a decade in prison, “there is nothing left to reform or forgive.”

He further urged the Chief Justice to ensure that the current panel concludes the matter without yet another reconstitution, saying the prolonged delays have been deeply agonising.

In a separate suit, Kazinda petitioned the East African Court of Justice to challenge the confiscation of his assets by the Inspector General of Government (IGG).

Although the IGG initially sought to participate in the proceedings two months ago, it later withdrew and was ordered to pay costs to Kazinda.