Speed Up Your Investigations Or Release Them! Court Gives State 20 Days Ultimatum To Bring Incarcerated MPs Ssewanyana, Ssegirinya To High Court
By Uganda Online Media
Kampala: The Masaka Chief Magistrate Court has given the state up to the 20 days ultimatum to conclude investigations and set a date when the two National Unity Platform(NUP) MPs Muhammad Ssegirinya and Makindye West Allan Ssewanyana are to be committed to the High Court for Trial on their second murder charge over the Masaka Bijambiya killings.
The two appeared on Wednesday via zoom for further mention of their case, however, Masaka Resident Prosecutor Richard Birivumbuka informed Chief Magistrate Grace Wakooli that investigations are still ongoing asking for more time to have them concluded which prompted court to give them up to 22 of this month to have investigations concluded.
The court ordered that prison Authorities allow Relatives and Defense Lawyers to access the two legislators and also allow the suspects to access their private personal doctors for treatment.
The Court further ordered that allegations of torture by the suspects be investigated to ascertain the truth after lawyer Shamim Malende informed Court that her clients were tortured while in detention including at Kitalya where they are on remand.
The two Legislators have often complained before a court of being tortured at Kitalya with Ssegirinya claiming that he has been subjected to solitary Confinement and being left in the scorching sun during the day.
The MP’s are charged with murder and terrorism in which Prosecution alleges that on the 4th day of August 2021, the MP’s killed one Bwanika Joseph of Kisekka B Village, Kankamba Parish, Lwengo District.
The two MPs were slapped with several charges related to terrorism, murder, and attempted murder over their alleged role in the Greater Masaka machete killings where over 30 people were left dead by unknown assailants who hacked them using machetes.
According to the summary of evidence that the state availed to court and would be relied on in pinning the accused persons, there is CCTV footage allegedly captured from a restaurant and other places in Ndeeba linking the two legislators and other accused to planning the killings in Masaka.
The state is also set to produce in court call log records and statements recorded from some of the accused persons confessing to having taken part in the killings that rocked Masaka and also pin the co-accused and their role in the machete murders.
According to the indictment, the killings were politically motivated with an aim of discrediting the government, and assailants were paid between shs50,000 and shs100,000 whenever they held meetings to plan the attacks.
