Embattled city businessman and Company Director at Taifa Partners Limited, Emmanuel Asiimwe left Buganda Road Court on Friday afternoon sweating plasma after the principal witness from Uganda Forensics Laboratory giving expert evidence to confirm forgery and uttering false documents.
During the fully parked court session that was presided over by the Buganda Road Court Chief Magistrate, His Worship Ronald Kayizzi, the expert led court on the analysis that was done on the suspected signatures of the former Company Secretary Charles Okello that were appended on the Powers of Attorney which Asiimwe used to revoke the Powers of Attorney previously granted by the company to one Assa Tumwesigye.
The detailed expert report also confirmed that the company resolutions which Asiimwe uttered to Uganda Registration Services Bureau (URSB) and other government agencies were also forged.
In the process of cross examination, Asiimwe’s lawyers helplessly and in a very disorganized manner laboured much to challenge the report but the expert was too clever to them. Beaming with blessedness, the soft spoken forensic expert made the life of the lawyers hard as most people in court kept nodding in approval to most of her answers.
At some point, Rogers Mugabe, one of the five lawyers from GEM Advocates warned the expert not to be too clever, something that left people in the courtroom wondering whether a senior government handwriting expert can be dull.
By the time court was adjourned everyone in the audience realised that the five lawyers (Stanley Okecho – lead counsel, Pius Katumba, Rogers Mugabe, Patricia Mugisa and one Elizabeth) from GEM Advocates had not done much to save Asiimwe from chilling at the sand-less beach of Luzira Prison. The three male lawyers, who spent two hours cross-examining the forensics expert, failed to punch holes in the report.
While the male lawyers kept repeating themselves by asking similar questions, their two business and bum-luscious partners kept scrutinizing the file with hopes of landing a miraculous document to pin the expert. Asiimwe’s magical lawyer who had preferred to remain in the background as his partners Katumba and Mugabe recycled questions, later stood to fire the last bullet in the chamber. However, what shocked people in court is how he asked the expert whether the report confirmed that Asiimwe’s signature was forged. The steady expert said the report was about Okello’s signatures – and had nothing to do with Asiimwe’s signature since it was not part of the investigation. Okecho’s question sounded weird, irrelevant and left the people in the audience wondering why a senior lawyer kept asking about Asiimwe’s signature yet the investigation report was about the former company secretary Charles Okello.
The unfolding events in court left Asiimwe in a clear state of oblivion. Although he confidently entered court smiling from ear to ear in the company of his many lawyers, he looked very perplexed in the dock as his lawyers were carpeted.
Even though the expert report does not pin Asiimwe directly that he is the one who forged Okello’s signature, the criminal law liability does not necessarily rely on direct evidence but courts are enjoined to rely on the circumstantial evidence when direct evidence is not available.
Indeed, it has been held in several courts that circumstantial evidence is the best form of evidence since it heavily relies on corroboration hence can’t be compromised.
This therefore implies that all the court needs is to compare expert report to any evidence available. For example, there is already a court ruling by URSB under petition number 21783/2023.
The parties are Assa Tumwesigye Vs Emmanuel Asiimwe and Taifa Partners Limited. In this ruling, it was held that the Powers of Attorney registered in August 2022 together with a resolution dated July 17, 2022 were all forged, non-existent and expunged.
Since Asiimwe is the only person that has benefited from these Powers of Attorney legally, an inference can be made that he executed the forgery himself and no one else.
On top of URSB ruling, Okello has already testified he did not utter any of the documents that were submitted by police as question documents to the expert. And since Okello did not sign but Asiimwe signed on these documents himself, circumstantially it is Asiimwe who forged or procured the person that forged.
Court will resume on January 10, 2025 to hear more experts and witnesses and finally give Asiimwe the opportunity to defend himself. Asiimwe remains in trouble since the matter of forging resolutions to give self-Powers of Attorney, once prosecuted very well, attracts a life sentence.
