Buganda Road: 'Besigye Declined to Appear in Court'

In a handwritten letter, which Senior Principal Grade One Magistrate Winnie Nankya Jatiko promised to share with the defence team after the court session, Besigye stated that he did not wish to attend the hearing.

Jailed opposition stalwart Kizza Besigye has declined to appear before the Buganda Road Grade 1 Magistrates Court, according to a letter delivered by Uganda Prisons.

In a handwritten letter, which Senior Principal Grade One Magistrate Winnie Nankya Jatiko promised to share with the defence team after the court session, Besigye stated that he did not wish to attend the hearing.

Besigye is currently facing charges of inciting violence. The charges stem from a protest he led in June 2022 against the rising prices of commodities in Uganda.

During this protest, Besigye, along with fellow opposition politician and co-accused Samuel Lubega Mukaaku, allegedly made statements urging the public to demonstrate, actions which authorities claim were calculated to lead to destruction or damage to property.

This unexpected development left the defence team, led by Erias Lukwago, in shock.

"It was so strange! There was no one from the prisons that we saw at court. The person that delivered the letter was even in usual clothes. There was no explanation from the prosecution during the session, only for a letter to come from nowhere," Lukwago said.

The proceedings were dominated by questions surrounding why Besigye, listed as A1 in the case, had not appeared in court.

Mr Lukwago argued that issuing a production warrant would be untenable since, in his view, Besigye was being held illegally following a Supreme Court judgment that ordered his release after outlawing civilian trial in the military court.

The four-time presidential candidate has been incarcerated in Luzira since his arrest in Kenya on November 16.

"Dr Besigye has no court order keeping him in prison, so he is in a safe house. Luzira is now a safe house," Lukwago said.

He also revealed that Besigye’s legal team had not heard from him since Friday, despite having received daily updates before.

Lukwago stated that they would now apply for a habeas corpus order at the High Court and write to the Commissioner General of Prisons to request a visit to Besigye the following day.

Meanwhile, another point of contention in court was the prosecution’s failure to produce a witness they had previously assured would be present.

Prosecutors claimed they had expected the witness to appear but did not know why they had failed to show up. They stated that they would now investigate the reason for the absence.

The court has been adjourned to February 14, 2024, with Magistrate Nankya promising to issue a production warrant for Besigye.