The Constitutional Court has issued directives in a case in which the legality of the State House Anti -Corruption Unity was challenged.
Col Edith Nakalema, the former head of the State House Anti -Corruption Unit was sued in her personal capacity together with the Attorney General in a petition that seeks to disband the unit and declare its establishment as a violation of the Ugandan Constitution and the other laws of the country.
On Tuesday, Henry Twinomuhwezi, the deputy Registrar of the Constitutional Court, directed parties in the matter to file joint scheduling notes before the hearing of the petition kicks off.
He also set May, 20 2022 as the date for the parties to appear in court to agree on the issues to be determined by the Constitutional Court.
The directives on Tuesday followed the appearance of the petitioners and their lawyers led by Emmanuel Kigenyi of Opira and Company Advocates in the absence of the respondents or their representatives.
The petition
Private citizens led by city lawyer Jeremiah Keeyo Mwanje, Law Development Center student Justus Akampurira, Thomas Bagonza also a student of law and businessman Darius Muteesa petitioned the Constitutional Court challenging the legality of the State House Anti-Corruption unit.
The group said in their petition that unit’s actions are illegal, inconsistent with paragraphs 11(i) and v(i) of the National Objectives and Directive principles of the State Policy and articles 1,20,23,27,28,44,99(3) of the Constitution.
They further want the Constitutional Court to declare that the State House Anti-Corruption Unit is not constitutionally empowered to investigate, arrest and detain any suspect because such powers were given to Uganda police through the Criminal Investigation Department or the office of the Inspector General of government.
The group also wants court to declare the agency that is not constitutionally empowered to order any government agency created under the Constitution to investigate, arrest, and detain suspects since they are not stipulated in the laws of Uganda.
They seek a Court declaration that all investigations, arrests and detentions made by Col Nakalema who was sent for further studies by President Museveni are illegal and in contravention with the Constitution.
The petitioners further asked court to order that the State House Anti-Corruption Unit be disbanded with immediate effect because President Museveni didn’t follow the laws when he was establishing the unit in 2018.
They group wants the Attorney General, be ordered to release all detainees arrested and in custody on orders of Col Nakalema.
The Constitutional Court was further asked to make a permanent injunction restraining Col Nakalema from carrying on her branded impugned functions as the head of the unit.
” Col Nakalema activities and those generally of the State House Anti-Corruption Unit have extended to granting something akin to police bond in instances where she sees fit to do so and where her investigations are still being carried on” Akampulira stated in his affidavit .
The petitioner argues that the actions of Col Nakalema to parade arrested suspects before the media contravenes the doctrine of presumption of innocence and kills their reputation in the public.
However in their defense through an affidavit sworn by Bernard Kinyera Ochaya a principle Inspectorate Officer in the Inspectorate of government attached to State House Anti-Corruption Unit and Israel Edwin Ochwo the head of legal in the Unit , the allegations were denied and asked court to dismiss the petition with costs.
The duo denied claims that the unit usurps with the powers of the IGG who constitutionally mandated to investigate all natures of corruption in the country and the powers of the police’s Criminal Investigations Department(CID) which is supposed to investigate crimes.
The respondents told court that they haven’t taken the powers of the Directorate of Public Prosecution to prosecute the suspected corrupt people as the petitioners allege.
They further told court that they don’t have detention cells were they illegally kept the suspects arrested but rather in police cells.
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