After a Year in Jail; Ugandan MPs Ssegirinya, Ssewanyana released on bail

Kawempe North Member of Parliament (MP), Muhammad Ssegirinya and Makindye West Legislator Allan Ssewanyana have finally been granted bail.

September 7, 2022, made a year since the Ssegirinya and his Makindye West counterpart Allan Ssewanyana were remanded to prison in connection with the machete Killings in the greater Masaka region. The legislator’s trial had never kicked off and their numerous attempts to get out on bail had hit a dead end.

Masaka High Court judge, Lawrence Tweyanze on Monday afternoon reasoned with the lawyers of the two legislators that it is their constitutional right for the two to be released on bail but to also enable them get treatment outside prison they have been since September 2021.

The judge directed that each of the two legislators pays a cash bond of shs20 million as well as depositing their passports with the court.

The sureties for the MPs have each been asked to pay a shs50 million non-cash bond.

The legislators have also been asked to report to the registrar of the International Crimes Division of the High Court in Kampala once a month but also warned against interfering with investigations into their cases.

The release on bail came on the conditions of an unprecedented move in which the state which had earlier opposed the application by the two legislators opted to reverse the same.

Chief state attorney, Richard Birivumbuka told court that the DPP had issued a certificate of no objection to the bail application and subsequently asked that the three affidavits filed against the bail application be withdrawn.

The state attorney however asked court for a “substantial amount of cash” to be imposed on the two legislators if court is to release them on bail.

Trouble for the legislators started on September 3, 2021 when the Commissioner of Police, Paul Kato Tumuhimbise on behalf of the then Criminal Investigations Director, Grace Akullo wrote to the Speaker of Parliament summoning them to appear before detective Moses Taremwa at Masaka Police Station on September 6 and record statements in connection with the July and August 2021 Greater Masaka spate of machete killings.

At least 26 people were killed and several others injured by the assailants in Lwengo and Masaka districts. The majority of the victims were elderly people living alone in their homes. The police summons came days after Police spokesperson, Fred Enanga was quoted saying that some suspects arrested in connection to the machete attacks had implicated the two legislators for holding planning meetings for the murders in Ndeeba, a Kampala suburb.