Uganda Law Society has filed a fresh application before Buganda Road chief magistrate court against the Attorney General Dr Sam Mayanja challenging the continued imprisonment of maverick city lawyer Male Mabirizi.
In their application before Chief magistrate Rita Kidasa Wanyama, the Law Society are seeking declarations that the ongoing criminal prosecution against Mabirizi is null and void citing violation of his rights under Article 20(2),23(1)(c),23(4),29(1)(a) and 43 of the Constitution.
They are also seeking for a permanent stay of the criminal prosecution against the accused person insisting that the charge sheet is illegal and with immediate effect they want his unconditional release from prison.
“An order for compensation of Shs199m to Male Mabirizi for the violation of his fundamental rights,” the application reads in parts.
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Through the evidence affidavit of Christine Awori, the Uganda Law Society Chief Executive Office states that they filed the application in public interest and pursuant to its statutory and constitutional rights as a public defender and protector of the rule of law, the constitution and fundamental rights and freedoms.
She added that the application is also filed on behalf of its members and Ugandans who are united against prosecutorial overreach to matters of freedom of expression and protection of the rights of millions of social media users.
She stated that Mabirizi the Uganda Law Society Rule of Law Champion 2025 winner has been gravely affected by the actions of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) Lino Anguzu’s actions of sanctioning the broadcasting without a license criminal charge sheet against the accused person noting that allowing him to proceed with such barbaric, unprofessional acts, may lead to many Ugandans being imprisoned illegally.
Uganda Law Society led by their president Isaac Ssemakadde filed the said application weeks after a team of more than 30 human rights and constitutional lawyers led by counsel Phillip Karugaba petitioned Anguzu on the continued imprisonment of Mabirizi warning that his actions will cost taxpayers billions of shillings in compensation.
Mabirizi has already filed a petition in the East African Court of Justice accusing Kidasa for refusing to recuse herself from his criminal trial citing biasness and the Chief State Attorney Richard Birivumbuka of violating his human rights.
However, Kidasa defended herself through an affidavit filed by the Attorney General that whatever she did is line with the Constitution of Uganda noting that the charge sheet resulted from a complaint made by the Chief Justice Dr Flavian Zeija and Court of Appeal judge Musa Ssekaana who accused Mabirizi of using his social media platforms of make defamatory statements against them.
Ssemakadde had earlier disagreed with Mabirizi on how to handle the matter with Mabirizi claiming that Ssemakadde was not happy with his actions against Kidasa especially when he asked her to recuse herself from his case.
Ssemakadde had advised Mabirizi to concentrate on exposing President Museveni’s bad leadership which Mabirizi declined to accept.
He insisted that it is not Museveni imprisoning him but Kidasa who accepted to be compromised by her superiors and she abandoned the law and instead resorted to persecuted him as a way of settling his score against him for dragging her to the Judicial Service Commission seeking her remove from public service on grounds of incompetence.
