Chibita distances self from Katatumba eviction order

By Taddeo Bwambale & Juliet Waiswa

The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Justice Mike J. Chibita, has distanced himself from a document indicating that he directed the Registrar of the High Court to evict Boney Katatumba from Hotel Diplomate.

Chibita has since asked the Police to investigate the origin of the document, whose details were published in Saturday Vision.

His office has also issued a press release, stating that the said action was outside the DPP’s mandate.

In a statement, Jane Ouko, the DPP’s spokesperson, said: “We have read with great concern the article titled, “DPP orders Katatumba out of Hotel Diplomate.”

The statement read: DPP, Justice Mike J. Chibita, did not write the March 31, letter attributed to him neither did he direct the Registrar of the High Court to move an immediate eviction of Boney Katatumba from Hotel Diplomate.

The mandate of the DPP is restricted to the prosecution of criminal cases and guiding of the criminal investigations by the Police. The kind of orders or directions that he is said to have made (as per the Saturday Vision story) are civil orders and, therefore, do not fall within his mandate.

Similarly, the DPP has no legal mandate to direct the Registrar of the High Court to perform any function. No criminal cases pertaining to Boney Katatumba and Hotel Diplomate have been received at the directorate from the Police. We have  established that the Land Protection Unit, whose legal officer is Julius Twinomujuni, and not the quoted James Tusiime, did not receive any such letter from the DPP.