Uganda Law Society (ULS) President Isaac Ssemakadde has issued a strongly worded statement condemning what he describes as the erosion of constitutional governance and the misuse of public office in Uganda.
In a bold critique, Ssemakadde accused state institutions and public officials of abandoning their duty to serve citizens and instead enabling authoritarian practices.
In his statement Ssemakadde argued that public office has been stripped of its foundational purpose and turned into an instrument of control.
He claimed that government institutions are increasingly being used to advance executive interests at the expense of public accountability.
“Public office in Uganda has been completely decoupled from public trust. It has been transformed into a weapon of coercion, a tool for executive overreach, and a fortress of imperial impunity,” Ssemakadde said.
The ULS president pointed to key arms of the justice system, including the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) and the judiciary, alleging that they have been compromised.
According to him, these institutions are no longer acting independently but are instead being used to settle political disputes and legitimize controversial decisions.
“When the DPP’s office is weaponised to settle political scores, when the Bench is packed to rubber-stamp military decrees, and when civil servants behave like colonial administrators rather than custodians of the people, silence is not professionalism. It is outright complicity,” he stated.
Ssemakadde further criticized public officials who, he said, hide behind titles while undermining constitutional principles.
He warned that citizens are increasingly aware of institutional failures and are closely monitoring those in positions of authority.
“To every public officer hiding behind a title, a gown, or a gavel while actively subverting the Constitution: your institutional cover is blowing parched. The sovereign—the ordinary citizen—is watching,” he added.
The outspoken lawyer also positioned the Uganda Law Society as a key actor in resisting what he termed the decline of democratic values. He declared that the legal fraternity would not remain passive in the face of alleged constitutional violations.
“The Radical New Bar refuses to play the role of a quiet, well-behaved funeral director at the burial of Ugandan democracy. We will not look away. We will not comply,” Ssemakadde asserted.
He concluded by calling for active resistance against any use of the law to oppress citizens, framing such defiance as a constitutional obligation.
“If the law is made an instrument of oppression, defiance becomes our highest constitutional duty,” he said.
The remarks are likely to intensify debate around governance, judicial independence, and the role of public institutions in Uganda’s political landscape.