36 supporters of the National Unity Platform party have been remanded back to Kitalya prison for an extra week, after the army prosecutors asked the General Court Martial to give them 7 days to respond to a fresh bail application filed by their lawyers on Monday.
The supporters were arrested on December 29th in Kalangala and are all facing charges of illegal possession of ammunition. On Monday, they appeared before the court presided over by Lt General Andrew Gutti and applied for bail through their lawyers led by Anthony Wameli.
The suspects include;
Ali Bukeni alias Nubian Li, Edward Ssebuufu alias Eddie Mutwe, Hassan Ssemakula alias Abdul Souldier, Kenny Kyalimpa, Mudde Ntambi, William Nyanzi alias Mbogo, Lukeman Mwijukye alias Kampala, Muhammad Nsubuga alias Eddoboozi, Adam Matovu, Shakirah Nambozo alias Sukie and Ibrahim Tamale among others.
Their lawyer, Wameli asked court to grant his clients bail on grounds that ever since they were charged in January, to date their trial has never kicked off and there is a likelihood that it may delay yet his clients have been in jail for more than four months.
He further explained that the applicants have no capacity to disrupt investigations, adding that their colleagues who were given bail have been complying with the conditions.
According to counsel Wameli, four of the accused persons are currently sick and undergoing treatment which requires immediate attention and cannot be provided when they are in prison.
The defence presented seven sureties some of whom attended court while others were denied access by the heavy deployment of military police soldiers outside court.
The sureties included Aisha Kabanda the Deputy Secretary-General for National Unity Platform and the head of the Women League Flavia Kalule Nabagabe who all didn’t access the court. Others are Mathias Mpuga the Vice President for National Unity Platform-NUP in Buganda Region, the Secretary-General David Lewis Rubongoya, the head of Mobilisation Fred Nyanzi Ssentamu and the head of Training and Patriotism Alex Waiswa Mufumbiro.
However, after Wameli had presented the application, the army prosecutors led by Major Emmy Ekyaruhanga asked to be given a week to make a response to the application, arguing that the officer who was supposed to swear an affidavit responding to the application was away in Gulu on other state duties and will return in a week.
Lt General Andrew Gutti adjourned the case up to May 25 2021 to allow the prosecution to respond to the matter.
