Court of Appeal declines to hear the bail application for Two MPs

By Racheal Najjuma

29^th June 2022

The Court of Appeal has declined to entertain the hearing of the bail application of Kawempe North Member of Parliament Muhammad Segirinya and his counterpart from Makindye West, Allan Sewanyana citing lack of jurisdiction.

The two legislators ran to the court of appeal after being denied bail at the high court level with hope that they will get some positive results which hasn’t been the case.

In the last court preceding the State represented by Chief State Attorney Joseph Kyomuhendo and Richard Birivumbuka asked a panel of three Justices of the Court of Appeal led by Justice Cheborion Barishaki to dismiss the appeal on grounds that the court lacked jurisdictions to hear the matter which court has concurred with.

However, on their dissatisfaction for the period the legislators have stayed in prison, the judges have directed the court registry to compile all the necessary documents and forward them to the trial judge for an expeditious trial.

Samuel Muyizi who held a brief for Counsel Erias Lukwago on behalf of the appellants has revealed that they are now going to approach the constitutional court to further seek for justice.

The two legislators were first arrested on September 15^th 2021 alongside seven others in connection with the machete killings in Lwengo and Masaka. They were later, on 21 September 2021 granted bail, shortly after, the duo was arrested again from the outskirts of Kigo prisons on September 23rd and 26th 2021 and fresh murder charges were preferred against them.