Justice Douglas Singiza Karekona has been appointed as the new Chairperson of the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) by President Yoweri Museveni. He succeeds Justice Benjamin Kabito, who has led the commission since September 2016.
Sources indicate that Justice Singiza has already begun familiarization tours at the JSC and has been introduced to its staff. His appointment comes after the expiration of Kabito’s tenure on January 21, 2025, which left a leadership vacuum in the institution responsible for appointing and regulating judicial officers in Uganda. Kabito had previously taken over from Justice James Ogoola.
At 56, Justice Singiza has had a distinguished legal career and gained national prominence while presiding over high-profile cases. He notably handled the offensive communication case against novelist Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, who was granted bail but later fled to Europe.
Kakwenza has since accused Singiza of professional misconduct, alleging that the judge remanded him despite visible signs of torture and refused to return his passport for medical treatment abroad.
Justice Singiza also came into the spotlight after ruling on unsuccessful bail applications for opposition figure Dr. Kizza Besigye, Obeid Lutaale, and their lawyer Eron Kiiza. His dismissal of their applications led to criticism from opposition supporters, some of whom labeled him a “Nazi-Judge”—a characterization he has firmly condemned.
Before his appointment as Acting High Court Judge, Singiza served as Chief Magistrate at Buganda Road Court and previously worked at Nakawa Chief Magistrates Court.
His academic credentials are extensive, including a PhD in Public Law from the University of the Western Cape (South Africa), a Master’s Degree in Human Rights and Democratization from the University of Pretoria, a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) from Makerere University, and a Postgraduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Centre in Kampala.
Justice Singiza has also held key administrative roles, including serving as Secretary to the Commission of Inquiry into Land Matters in 2016, chaired by Supreme Court Justice Catherine Bamugemereire.
More recently, in August 2024, he ruled in favor of a service award granted to former Leader of Opposition Mathias Mpuuga and three other parliamentary commissioners, a decision that sparked debate. He upheld the payments—500 million shillings for Mpuuga and 400 million shillings for each of the other commissioners—on the grounds that the awards had been lawfully approved by Parliament and were included in the budget presented by the Executive.
