In Nabilatuk district, Uganda, two children, Emmy Lokol, 12, and his 10-year-old brother, John Aleper, are struggling to cope with life after their parents and elder brother were arrested in January 2026. Veronika Lemukol and Mariko Iriama, the parents, along with their son Francis Moru, were taken into custody in connection with a murder case and remanded to Nakapiripirit Government Prison. Since then, Lokol and Aleper have been left to fend for themselves.
The two brothers have dropped out of school, with Lokol, who was in Primary Four, and Aleper, in Primary Two, at Acegeretolim Primary School, now struggling to find food and other necessities in Welthunger Village, Nabilatuk Sub-county. The responsibility of finding food and surviving has fallen on the two brothers, forcing them to turn to charcoal burning. Lokol described their situation as traumatic, saying they cannot actively participate in class due to the burden they have at home.
Despite the family selling land to raise money for bail, the children have been unable to secure their parents' release. A neighbour bought part of their land and gave them Shs300,000 upfront, with the balance expected to be paid after their parents were released. However, the money was spent on transport and food during a prison visit. Lokol said they hired a cyclist, a relative, to facilitate fuelling of the motorcycle and buy foodstuff to carry to prison.
The cost of pursuing the case has become another burden for the children. A return boda boda journey from Nabilatuk to Nakapiripirit, about 57 kilometres away, costs between Shs60,000 and Shs80,000. Lokol says travelling to court has become difficult for the family, whose resources are already stretched. Prison authorities, however, have questioned why relatives would need to spend money buying food for the remanded suspects, as inmates receive meals from the prison.
The situation of Lokol and his brother has brought renewed attention to the difficulties residents of Nabilatuk face in accessing justice. Residents must travel more than 50 kilometres to Nakapiripirit to attend court, often at their own expense. They also say complainants can be required to meet the costs of transporting suspects and facilitating witnesses. The irony is that Nabilatuk itself has a fully furnished Grade One Magistrate's Court with staff quarters for judicial officers.
The Nabilatuk court facility was renovated and handed over in 2025 but remains unused. The last court session in Nabilatuk was held in 2024 before judicial services were moved to Nakapiripirit. Residents are questioning why they continue to travel long distances for court services when they have a completed court facility in their district. They have also raised the issue of local representation within the judiciary, pointing to Justice Jane Frances Abodo, who hails from the area and serves as Uganda's Principal Judge.
James Opio, the Moroto Chief Magistrate, has challenged Nabilatuk district leaders to join the judiciary in pushing for the operationalisation of the court. Opio said one of the challenges facing the region is the reluctance of some judicial officers to work in Karamoja. For Lokol and his younger brother, however, the consequences of the long journey to justice are already being lived at home, with their classroom days replaced by the struggle to find food, while charcoal burning has become their means of survival as they wait for their parents' case to be resolved.
Key points
- The arrest of parents and elder brother has left two children out of school and struggling to survive in Uganda's Nabilatuk district.
- The district has a fully furnished Grade One Magistrate's Court that remains unused, forcing residents to travel long distances for court services.
- The situation highlights the difficulties residents face in accessing justice and the need for local representation within the judiciary.
