In the matter of AMG (Family Cause No. 1 of 2026) [2026] UGHC 281 (27 March 2026)

Page 1 of 3 THE REPUBLIC OF UGANDA IN THE HIGH COURT OF UGANDA AT MBARARA FAMILY CAUSE NO: 01 OF 2026 5 IN THE MATTER OF AMG (NAME INITIALED) (MINOR) AGED 12 YEARS AND IN THE MATTER OF A PETITION BY KACONCO GASTON GRANDFATHER OF THE MINOR TO BE APPOINTED LEGAL GUARDIAN OF AMG (NAME INITIALED) 10 BEFORE: Hon. Justice Nshimye Allan Paul. M. RULING REPRESENTATION 15 The petitioner was represented by Adv. Musinguzi Rogers from Ms LIN Advocates. BACKGROUND This petition was brought under Article 139(1) of the Constitution 1995, 20 Section 37 of the Judicature Act, Sections 43B of the Children Act, Section 98 of the Civil Procedure Act, and Order 52 Rules 1, 2 & 3 of the Civil Procedure Rules, seeking orders that; 1. The petitioner be appointed a legal guardian of A MG (name initialed) , a child aged 12 years under the children Act with all necessary directions 25 necessary to repatriate as requested by the Spanish lawyers. 2. The petitioner be allowed to repatriate the minor child from Spain 3. That such orders be made by this court as the nature of the case may require. 30 The petition is supported by an affidavit deponed by the petitioner. Page 2 of 3 GROUNDS The salient grounds stated in the petition are; i. That the petitioner is the paternal grandfather of the minor. ii. That the minor is a daughter of Tumwebaze Agabito the son of the petitioner. 5 iii. That the petitioner took possession of the child when she was one year old having a disability of club foot iv. That around 2024 Mrs Concepcion illanes Ruiz offered to treat the minors club foot and thereby required the child to travel to Spain. v. That the petitioner consented to the treatment of the minor , granting 10 powers of attorney to Mrs Concepcion illanes Ruiz thereafter the minor traveled to spain on 1stJune 2024. vi. That Mrs Concepcion illanes Ruiz failed to return the minor after a period of 90 to 120 days as she had informed the petitioner. vii. That appointment of the petitioner as a legal guardian shall not be 15 detrimental to the interests of the minor. SUBMISSIONS The petitioner’s lawyers filed submissions that have been considered. 20 DETERMINATION It is law that a petition for legal guardianship to be vested with parental responsibility of a child shall follow the procedure in SECTION 73 AND 74 OF THE CHILDREN ACT CAP 62 , read hand in hand with SECTION 78 OF THE CHILDREN ACT CAP 62 that lays down the conditions for guardianship . A legal 25 guardianship petition must conform to SECTION 74(C) AND FORM 1 OF SCHEDULE 4 OF THE CHILDREN ACT CAP 62. In principle when a court of law is considering a petition for guardianship of a child, it ought to consider the best interests of the child (see section 78 (1) (e) 30 of the Children Act Cap 62) , ascertain whether the child if aged above twelve years consents to the guardianship (see section 78 ( 1) (f) of the Children Act Cap 62) and finally consider the recommendation of the Probation and Welfare officer (section 78 (2) (c) of the Children Act Cap 62). 35 Page 3 of 3 I have perused the court record, I find that the child neither appeared in court, nor did the probation and social welfare officer interact with her before writing the report on 12/01/2026. It is also clear from the evidence of the petitioner in paragraph 3 of the 5 affidavit in support that the child is 12 twelve years, which puts her in the category whose consent or ascertainable wishes ought to be obtained by talking to her . I find that it is risky to grant a guardianship order over a child that the court has not seen. 10 Lastly the petitioner averred that the parents of the child cannot be traced. The petitioner also claimed to be a grand father of the child, stating that the child is a daughter of his son called Tumwebaze Agabito . I note that despite these averments, the petitioner did not attach a birth certificate issued by the National Identification and Registration Authority (NIRA) to his petition to 15 prove the parents of the child , given that the NIRA issued birth certificate is proof of the child’s details including parents as provided in SECTION 39 (3) OF THE REGISTRATION OF PERSONS ACT CAP 332 The petitioner claimed that he wanted the guardianship order to enable him to 20 pursue the return of a child he gave to a Spanish National, and the Child was taken to Spain. The petitioner may be guided to report the issue of the child now in Europe to the Police, which can after investigations, use its mechanisms to ensure that the Ugandan child is returned to Uganda, if there is any illegality in her continued stay out of Uganda as the petitioner claims. 25 I find that the petitioner’s evidence on record is not sufficient to justify this court granting the prayers in the petition. In conclusion, I dismiss this petition. 30 …………………………………………….. NSHIMYE ALLAN PAUL M. JUDGE 27-03-2026