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Soroti, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Soroti Chief Magistrate Court has granted bail to the Forum for Democratic Change-FDC President, Patrick Amuriat Oboi and two Members of Parliament.
They were arrested last week and charged with unlawful assembly, common nuisance, burning vehicle tires on the road, blocking traffic, and assaulting three police officers. This followed a protest in Soroti city over the delayed cattle compensation.
Amuriat, Soroti City Woman MP Joan Alobo, Soroti City West MP Jonathan Ebwalu, Sam Acaitum, Silus Emiedu, and Isaac Ogaram were later remanded to Soroti Prison.
On Wednesday, their lawyer, Moses Okot Junior Bitek, told the court that the accused had presented more than twenty surities.
State Attorney Paul Okello raised objections to the bail application, citing discrepancies in the documentation. He pointed out that for Ebwalu, the introduction letter from the LC1 bore different stamps, while Joan Alobo had not submitted her introduction letter, and her residence was unknown to the court.
Okello expressed concerns that some sureties had been brought to court without clear evidence of their capacity to ensure that the accused would report back.
Despite these objections, Kalaga recognized that the surities met the court’s obligations and criteria. She granted cash bail of two million five hundred thousand shillings for each accused and ten million shillings non-cash for the sureties.
Additionally, Ebwalu and Alobo further charges related to unlawful assembly, common nuisance, and obstruction of traffic flow, during another protest at Soroti Main Market.
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