By Hannah Marion Namukasa
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Justice Jane Frances Abodo, has formally petitioned the Supreme Court to block what she describes as a deceptive legal maneuver by controversial land broker Muhammad Kamoga, aimed at avoiding criminal prosecution.
In a letter dated June 11, 2025, the DPP accuses Kamoga’s legal team Kusingura-Tinyebwa Advocates of misleading the Supreme Court into hearing an application to stay Court of Appeal orders that reinstated criminal proceedings against him at Entebbe Chief Magistrates Court.
Kamoga is facing eight serious criminal charges, including forgery, obtaining registration by false pretences, unlawful eviction, and malicious damage to property. The charges stem from a disputed acquisition of over 200 acres of land located at Garuga–Bukaya in Entebbe, Wakiso District, allegedly belonging to businessman Peter Bibangamba.
The DPP contends that Kamoga is attempting to subvert justice by pushing for his application to be heard in the absence of state prosecutors. Carolyn Hope Nabaasa, the Principal Assistant to the DPP, who signed the petition, points out that the application was improperly heard ex parte on May 29, 2025, a day when all court sessions were suspended due to the annual prosecutors’ symposium, as directed by Chief Justice Owiny Dollo.
“In the premises, we request and pray that this court be pleased to fix the hearing of Criminal Appeal Number 0138 of 2024 so that the matter is determined on its merits, rather than allowing the appellant to frustrate a lawfully ordered trial,” reads part of the complaint.
Nabaasa has also requested that the judge who heard Kamoga’s application grant the DPP an opportunity to respond before a ruling is delivered.
The contested land case involves claims that Kamoga forged signatures on transfer forms and fraudulently registered land titles in his name for property located in Busiro Block 435, Plot 8, and over 100 other plots totaling more than 200 acres. These alleged offenses are said to have occurred between May 7, 2020, and February 8, 2021, at the Wakiso District Land Office.
Additionally, Kamoga faces a second case involving charges of unlawful eviction and malicious damage to property, stemming from incidents reported on February 19 and 20, 2021, when individuals were allegedly evicted and their property destroyed.
The trial against Kamoga was reinstated by the Court of Appeal in October 2024, after it overturned a decision by the High Court’s Criminal Division that had initially stayed the proceedings. The appellate court ruled that the High Court lacked jurisdiction and that Kamoga had no legal basis to seek a stay of prosecution.
The DPP now seeks to ensure that the case proceeds without interference, emphasizing the need to uphold the integrity of the judicial process.
