DOI Alumni appointed as Acting Judge of the High Court Judge in Uganda

His appointment was preceded by a rigorous vetting and interview process conducted by the Judicial Service Commission.

“The Director of the Dullah Omar Institute (DOI) Prof Jaap de Visser (also my former doctoral promoter) was kind enough to write a powerful recommendation letter in support of my application  for Judgeship. One of the key emerging issues from the interview process relates to the necessity to contribute to the development of our jurisprudence, particularly in light of my research skills that derive from my training at DOI. As I embark on a judicial career at the High Court bench, my focus will be to reduce case backlog which is an endemic problem in Uganda, by meeting the set performance timelines for adjudication. In addition, it is my conviction that given my scholarly background, some of the ideas of jurisprudential value related  to decentralization and federal studies will find their way in my judgments. I am deeply interested in how Uganda’s decentralization program may be supported through our jurisprudence which in turn will strengthen our country’s nascent democracy. It is also my desire to ensure that Court decisions strengthen and foster arguments in support of planned development using land use and planning tools, which arguments I have heavily borrowed from the DOI.” -HW. Singiza Karekona Douglas