Lawyers representing maverick city lawyer Male Mabirizi have put the Director Public Prosecution (DPP) Lino Anguzo on notice over what they termed has continued unconstitutional persecution of their client.
In a letter dated 2nd April, 2024, Escala Associated Advocates request the DPP to exercise his constitutional powers under Article 120(3)(d) of the Constitution to withdraw the fresh charges slapped on their client and warned that Anguzo will be personally liable for using his office to violate a Ugandan citizen’s fundamental rights.
“We respectfully but firmly request that you call for and peruse the file and forthwith withdraw all the charges against our client pursuant to Article 20(2) and 120(3)(d) of the Constitution. Should the Office fail to do so, we shall have no alternative but to pursue all available remedies including filing a petition at the Constitutional Court for the declaration of Regulation 110(e) as null and void, a claim against your office for abuse of your prosecutorial discretion and for damages for violation of our client’s fundamental rights and freedoms,” the lawyers letter reads in parts.
Lawyers led by Yasin Ssentumbwe Munnagomba reminded Anguzo that his guiding principal should be to conduct prosecution following the country’s constitution and other laws of the land and avoid violating the rights of the accused.
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They added that by continuously prosecuting their client, he is violating the rules of the office he is occupying.
They insisted that the charges which Anguzo slapped on Mabirizi were declared illegal by the Supreme Court in the famous Andrew Mwenda, Charles Onyango Obbo case especially on criminalising fake news and using it as a weapon to imprison Ugandans.
Anguzo is also accused of violating the recent Constitutional Court landmark judgement in the case of Alternative digital media against the Attorney General where criminal defamation was also declared unconstitutional. They wondered why he is not following Attorney General Kiryowa Kiwanuka’s well explained guidance over the said judgement which he also appreciated with the reasoning and arguments of Justice Irene Mulyagonja Kakooza who wrote the lead judgement and accepted not to appeal against it.
The lawyers letter comes hours after Anguzo through his ruthless prosecutor Richard Birivumbuka withdrew the computer misuse charges against Mabirizi and charged him with fresh criminal charges of using his Tiktok and other social media platform to broadcast without a license from Uganda Communication Commission.
According to the charge sheet, Chief Justice Dr Flavian Zeija and controversial court of appeal judge Musa Ssekaana are the complainants who allege that Mabirizi used his social media platforms to spread fake news branding them as incompetent judicial officers who are very corrupt to the extent that one of them sold part of their properties to bribe their way to public offices.
Mabirizi declined to take plea on the new charges even though Buganda Road Chief Magistrate Rita Kidasa Wanyama entered a plea of not guilty as accused person was insisting that she should recuse herself from his matter citing biasness.
Mabirizi wondered why Kidasa, wife to New Vision boss Don Wanyama is using her administration role at Buganda Road Court to allocate herself all his criminal files even though the court has more than seven judicial officers.
“Rita, I’m telling you, one day even if it will be at your old age, you child will be imprisoned or you and you will be persecuted like you’re doing to me. You are laughing thinking that you’re too powerful but pay back time is coming,” a furious Mabiriza stated as the magistrate further remanded him until 15th April, 2026.
Mabirizi insisted that he has issues with Kidasa which resulted into dragging her to Judicial Service Commission seeking to be removed from the office of the judicial officer on grounds of being incompetent.
He claimed that she is using his ongoing imprisonment to revenge on him to the extent that she even dismissed his bail application on grounds of expired national identity cards well knowing that Ugandans have been renewing their identity card and many haven’t yet received their new IDs.
