Fresh testimony in the murder trial of Joan Kagezi has drawn a sharp response from Uganda Law Society president Isaac Ssemakadde, who has raised concern over the implications of the claims emerging in court.
Kagezi, a senior state prosecutor, was shot dead in March 2015 in Kampala by unknown gunmen while driving home. She was attacked at close range by assailants on a motorcycle shortly after stopping at a roadside stall.
The killing, which happened in front of her children, has remained one of Uganda’s most prominent unresolved cases.
The latest developments follow testimony by Nasur Abdallah Mugonole before the High Court.
His account has introduced new claims that could reshape the direction of the case if tested and upheld in court.
“Joan Kagezi's ghost still haunts us and now, the grave has begun to speak,” Ssemakadde said.
“The testimony of Nasur Abdallah Mugonole before the High Court is not just a bombshell it is a mirror held up to a system that has for too long treated state murder as a side show and witness protection as an afterthought.”
Central to the testimony are allegations that a former Inspector General of Police may have been involved in the planning or facilitation of the killing.
The claims have not been proven in court and remain part of ongoing proceedings.
“If it is true that a former IGP the very person constitutionally mandated to protect life and uphold the rule of law allegedly orchestrated or facilitated the assassination of a senior state prosecutor because she refused to trade justice for a billion shillings, then we are not dealing with mere crime. We are dealing with a crisis of state capture.”
Ssemakadde also pointed to claims that Kagezi may have been tracked through her phone using a device allegedly introduced through a person linked to her family.
“And if it is true that a tracking device was planted in her phone via a predator posing as a suitor to her daughter, then we must also interrogate the depth of surveillance, infiltration, and the weaponisation of intimate trust against those who dare to do their duty.”
He said the case now raises broader questions about accountability within state institutions.
“The question is no longer ‘Who killed Joan Kagezi?’ because we are now told the architecture of that murder may have been signed off from the highest seat in police.”
“The question is: Will the State prosecute its own? Or will we once again watch the powerful turn witnesses into targets, and the truth into a casualty?”
Ssemakadde called on investigative agencies and prosecutors to act without delay, maintaining that the outcome of the case will test the credibility of the justice system.
“I have said it before and I will say it again: No one is above the law not even a retired IGP. The DPP, the CID, and the Judiciary must move with speed, courage, and zero fear. The public must be vigilant. Joan Kagezi did not die for us to look away.”
“Let justice be done, though the heavens fall.”