Makerere University Council is under fire for sacking the chairperson of the Staff Tribunal, Justice Patrick Tabaaro without consulting the University Chancellor, Prof Ezra Suruma whose term had not yet expired.
In the May 22 letter addressed to the University Council Chairperson, Prof Suruma was not pleased with the removal of Justice Tabaro from office without consultation with him.
He says that the law provides that the Chancellor is the sole appointing authority of the Chairperson of the Tribunal and it also follows that only the said authority can lawfully remove the chairperson.
Trouble started on April 6 when the University Council halted activities of the staff tribunal following guidance from the Attorney
The University Council indicated that the Staff Tribunal was not properly constituted. However, according to the four-page letter addressed to Lorna Magara, Prof Ezra said that the University Council does not have powers to issue directives removing the Tribunal chairperson.
Justice Tabaaro’s contract had five weeks before reaching its end, something that raised the eyebrows of the public about why the university could not wait for his term to end.
It is against the above background that Prof Suruma has instructed the University Council to reinstate Justice Tabaaro until his term expires. He also asked the University Council to apologize to Tabaaro.
The university secretary says the University Council is slated to sit on June 21 to further address the raised concerns
