Mbarara district officials awarded UGX 10m for illegal detention

Kampala, Uganda |  THE INDEPENDENT |  Five people who were arrested by the State House Anti-Corruption Unit but never charged within 48-hours have been awarded compensation of 10 million Shillings by the High Court in Kampala.

The five include  Mbarara Chief Administrative Officer Felix Cuthbert Esoku, Godlive Ayebare and Emmanuel Himbisa, both Senior Land Officers, Aggrey Atukwatse, the Assistant Engineer and Human Resource Officer Rosalia Karuhanga.

They were arrested on February 22, 2019, on allegations of illegally receiving payment for various plots of land along Kamukuzi road in Mbarara municipality without authorization from Uganda Land Commission. They reportedly leased it to Rwampara County Member of Parliament Charles Ngabirano well knowing that the land in question didn’t belong to the Mbarara District local government.  

However, they were  brought to Kampala and detained at Kabalagala Police Station for five days without being charged in any competent court of law which violated their constitutional right of being produced within 48 hours. 

City Lawyer Nicholas Ecimu challenged the arrests and asked the court to declare that Lt Col Edith Nakalema, the head of the State House Anti-Corruption unit had usurped the powers of the  Inspector General of Government by causing the arrest of the accused persons. Ecimu equally asked the court to quash the said charges.

But in his decision on Thursday, Justice Musa Ssekaana acknowledged that indeed the suspects were kept in police cells for more than 48 hours in total violation of their constitutional rights. But he declined a request to halt the proceedings in the Anti-Corruption court saying that civil courts are not supposed to engage in criminal matters. He has also rejected the prayer seeking to declare that the applicants were subjected to torture and degrading treatment while in police custody.

He says that evidence provided by The Assistant Superintendent of Police  George Omony indicates that the applicants  were being detained in places where they would access both proper sanitation and medical facilities while being fed two meals per day.  

He awarded 10 million Shillings to each of them for having been held in illegal detention and imposed a fine of 2 million Shillings on the government as a punishment to deter security agencies from holding citizens without trial.

The Judge has ruled that the monies will attract a 15 per cent per annum effective today until when its paid in full.

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