Last updated on October 27th, 2021 at 06:43 pm
Renowned human rights lawyer, Mr. Isaac Ssemakadde and his client, Dr. Stella Nyanzi, the former Makerere University researcher, are threatening to bring a 1 Billion defamation suit against Journalist John Njoroge over a facebook post the pair regard as malicious, false and defamatory.
Mr. John Njoroge, on 1st March, wrote on his facebook page, in a clear attempt to out the phenomenal public interest defender, who is currently representing Public Universities’ Academics in their ongoing industrial action, as a crooked lawyer, that the two:
” went around NGOs and collected over 80M Ugx while knowing very well development partners had placed at [their] disposal a bottomless pit of funds to facilitate the ‘Pads for girls’ campaign which I helped design for free.
” The money was also to facilitate [ Stella Nyanzi’s] defense from state oppression and imprisonment following her poetry towards the first family of Uganda.”
Mr. Njoroge’s remarks appear to have been triggered by a tweet Mr. Ssemakadde sent rebuking the Uganda Law Society and its President Pheona Nabaasa Wall for holding out deceased lawyer Bob Kasango as an Advocate and member of the Bar association yet he was banned from practicing law in 2017.
https://twitter.com/IsaacSsemakadde/status/1365955986876465153?s=19
” Just this one ground alone can get you disbarred…” Mr. Njoroge, wrote. ” They did the noble thing to recognise Q. ” Q was Bob Kasango’s nick name.
Now, through their lawyers from Gem Advocates & Legal Consultants, Mr. Isaac Ssemakadde and Dr. Stella Nyanzi have in a cease and desist letter asked the Journalist to take down the facebook post, apologise for it, if he can not substantiate his claims.
” State two or more development partners that allegedly placed at the disposal of Mr. Ssemakadde and Dr. Stella Nyanzi ‘ a bottomless pit of funds’ to facilitate the ‘pads for girls’ campaign and Dr. Stella Nyanzi’s legal defense costs.
” State two or more NGOs from whom Mr. Ssemakadde and Dr. Stella Nyanzi allegedly collected 80 Million Uganda Shillings to facilitate the same aims as those already supported by the development partners referred to above.
State the ‘one ground alone’ in connection with the backers of the ‘pads for girls’ campaign and Dr. Stella Nyanzi’s legal defense for which Mr. Ssemakadde can allegedly be disbarred” The lawyers’ letter reads.
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The ‘Pads for Girls’ campaign was launched by Dr. Stella Nyanzi to provide sanitary pads to school – going girls who did not afford them. This was after First Lady Janet Museveni failed to deliver on her 2016 promise to get the pads to these girls.
Dr. Stella Nyanzi would go on to launch attacks on the first family and in one of her poems published on Facebook she referred to President Museveni as a ‘ pair of buttocks.’
She would later be charged with and arrested for Computer Misuse. It was these charges that Mr. Ssemakadde fought tirelessly leading to her eventual release.
Dr. Stella Nyanzi has since her failed bid to become Kampala Woman MP in the recent 2021 general election fled the country citing state repression.
” The abductions and detentions of political actors were getting closer to me; my children have been targets of police trailing. I just left prison in February last year and I don’t want to go back ” She told The East African Newspaper.
Mr. John Njoroge has been contacted for comment by The Legal Reports and he promised to respond.
However, should he continue to make ‘ baseless and defamatory’ allegations, Mr. Ssemakadde and Dr. Nyanzi’s lawyers say they will sue him for defamation and attach a 1 Billion Bill in damages.
Benjamin Ahikiiriza is a Legal Writer And Digital Communications & Marketing Specialist majoring in Lawyers, Law Firms And the larger Legal Sector.
Benjamin currently Works as the Director of Content and Business Development At LegalReports.