KAMPALA
President Yoweri Museveni has nominated Justice Jane Frances Abodo, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), to the position of Principal Judge, making her the first woman set to hold the third-highest office in the judiciary if approved by Parliament.
Deputy Presidential Press Secretary Farouk Kirunda yesterday confirmed that a letter circulating on social media about her nomination was authentic, adding that her name has been forwarded to Parliament for vetting.
“I congratulate her,” Mr Kirunda said in a statement.
If endorsed, Justice Abodo will replace Justice Flavian Zeija, who in February was elevated to Deputy Chief Justice. The Principal Judge ranks just below the Chief Justice and Deputy Chief Justice and is charged with overseeing case management in the High Court and magistrate courts across the country.
Trailblazer from Karamoja
Justice Abodo, 46, hails from the Karamoja sub-region in north-eastern Uganda. She studied law at Makerere University before obtaining a postgraduate diploma in legal practice from the Law Development Centre and later a Master of Laws from Trinity College Dublin.
She joined the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in 2007 as a trainee state attorney and quickly rose through the ranks, heading the Anti-Corruption desk, where she delivered some of the country’s highest conviction rates. In 2015, she was voted Best Prosecutor of the Year by the Uganda Law Society.
In 2018, she was appointed to the High Court’s Criminal Division, and two years later, President Museveni named her DPP. Under her leadership, the ODPP secured Uganda’s first war crimes conviction against a former Lord’s Resistance Army commander and achieved conviction rates of over 90 percent in corruption-related cases.
Judiciary under pressure
The nomination comes as Uganda’s courts struggle with a backlog of more than 42,000 cases, a challenge blamed on limited staffing and resources. The Principal Judge is expected to play a key role in judicial reforms, ensuring faster adjudication of cases and restoring public confidence in the justice system.
If approved by Parliament, Justice Abodo’s appointment would mark another milestone in her career and in the country’s judiciary, as she becomes the first woman to hold the powerful office of Principal Judge.
Who is Justice Jane Frances Abodo?
Age: 46
From: Karamoja sub-region, North-Eastern Uganda
Education: Makerere University (LLB), Law Development Centre (Postgraduate Diploma), Trinity College Dublin (LLM)
Career Path: Joined ODPP in 2007 → Rose to head Anti-Corruption Desk → High Court Judge (2018) → Director of Public Prosecutions (2020)
Notable Achievements:
Led ODPP to first war crimes conviction in Uganda
Consistently delivered above 90% conviction rate in corruption cases
Voted Uganda Law Society’s Best Prosecutor (2015)
Historic First: Poised to become Uganda’s first female Principal Judge.
📊 By the Numbers: Uganda’s Case Backlog
42,000+: Pending cases in courts nationwide
60%: Share of cases pending in magistrate courts
2019: Year electronic case management system was introduced
6,000: Average new cases filed monthly in Uganda’s courts
3: Number of Principal Judges Uganda has had since 2000
