Pastor Ssempa of Uganda was irregularly fired from the committee after voicing his concerns over employing incompetent staff, poor and wrongful utilization of funds allocated for activities of the committee, among other irregularities.
Ssempa wants court to grant him permission to file out of time, an application for judicial review, against what he describes as unlawful procedure and process undertaken by Lokodo and the Attorney General in removing him from the committee.
He said he was summarily removed after he wrote a letter dated April 17, 2018, to Fr Lokodo, expressing his dissatisfaction with the manner PCC was being administered.
In the letter to the minister, Ssempa heaped blame on the chairperson of the committee Dr. Annette Kezaabu.
He proposed that Kezaabu be dropped from chairperson position and another competent and committed person who understands the fight against pornography be appointed.
“Some time after I lodged the complaints, I came to establish that I had been wrongfully and unlawfully terminated from being a member of the committee on social media platforms and later by way of a letter instructing me to keep away from all activities of the committee,” Sempa claims.
Ssempa also complained to the Inspector General of Government for redress, saying the decision was made without following the necessary procedures, hence resulting in the violation of his right to a fair hearing.
“I was never heard on the allegations made against me. The actions of the respondents (Lokodo and Attorney General) were done in contravention of the rules of natural justice. Lokodo’s action are ultra vires since I was never accorded the opportunity to defend myself,” he contends.
Court documents indicate that Pastor Ssempa was appointed a member of the committee on August 2, 2017, in accordance with the Anti-Pornography Act, 2014, to serve for a period of five years, renewable once.
Pr. Ssempa was receiving a retainer fee of sh2.5m per month, sh200,000 per sitting during committee meetings and transport refund on official duty at a rate of sh1,000 per kilometre.
He was also receiving payment of sh150, 000 per night when travelling on duty within Uganda, a safari day allowance of sh14,500 and an allowance of $450 per night when travelling outside Uganda.
