After spending a week on remand at Luzira Prison, Uthman Shaban Ngobi—the Deputy District Kadhi of Luuka—has returned to court, expressing remorse for defamatory comments he made about a widow and her children.
Appearing before Chief Magistrate Ronald Kayizzi at Buganda Road Court on June 24, Ngobi confessed that the statements he made in TikTok videos targeting the family of the late Ahmed Salimin were untrue.
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“Your Worship, the things I said about the late Salimin’s family in those TikTok videos were false. I sincerely regret my actions and ask to be given the chance to apologize to the widow and her children,” Ngobi told the court.
The 39-year-old cleric, who also works as the county director for the Albayan Charitable Organization, is facing two counts under the Computer Misuse Act: malicious information and hate speech. He has pleaded not guilty to both charges.
Magistrate Kayizzi granted him a cash bail of Shs2 million and advised him to use the time before the next court date, set for July 8, to pursue reconciliation with the affected family.
“This court promotes restorative justice. If reconciliation fails, we shall proceed to full trial,” Kayizzi ruled.
Efforts toward mediation are being led by Uganda’s Grand Mufti, Sheikh Shaban Mubaje, along with prominent religious figures from the Busoga sub-region.
Prosecutor Ivan Kyazze told the court that in April 2025, Ngobi and unidentified accomplices posted several videos online—some recorded in George Street, Kampala, and Iganga District—containing defamatory and harmful statements about Shifah Ahmed, daughter of the late Salimin.
The videos, circulated widely on TikTok and Albayyan TV, accused Shifah and her siblings of having a hand in their father’s death. They further labeled her a prostitute and claimed her mother was HIV-positive and engaged in sex work.
“These were malicious, degrading remarks clearly aimed at humiliating and emotionally distressing the victims,” said Kyazze.
Court records show that tensions erupted during a mid-April family meeting convened by the Attorney General to discuss the late Salimin’s estate. Also present at the meeting was Saidah Omar, who claims to be Salimin’s second wife and is currently facing separate forgery charges.
During the session, Shifah Ahmed tried to have Omar arrested based on an existing case file at Jinja Central Police Station. The dispute turned physical and was filmed, with Ngobi and others later uploading the footage online.
In one of the videos, Ngobi allegedly claimed he saw the Salimin children performing witchcraft rituals on their father’s corpse—an accusation that fueled public outrage and further traumatized the family.
“Since then, our lives have been turned upside down. People insult us, claim our mother is HIV-positive, and say we killed our father,” Shifah testified in court.
Investigations into Ahmed Salimin’s death are still ongoing at Jinja Central Police Station.
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