High court asked to dismiss Stella Nyanzi review application

Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The High Court has been asked to dismiss an application filed by researcher Stella Nyanzi challenging the closure of her defence without an opportunity to summon defence witnesses through the public media.

The matter is in relation to a loutish birthday poem, targeted at the President’s late mother Esteeri Kokundeka, which was posted on Stella Nyanzi’s social media pages on September 16, 2018, a day after President Museveni’s 74th birthday.

The prosecution alleges that Nyanzi used a computer to post statements crafted in vulgarity wishing that Museveni should had died at the time of his birth and that she willfully and repeatedly used electronic communication to post similar messages which disturbed the peace, quiet or right of privacy of President Museveni.

Nyanzi had listed up to 19 witnesses for her defence, among them Barnabas Mustapha Mugisa, Prof Sylvia Tamale, Dr Susan Kiguli, Criminal Investigations Director Grace Akullo, Dr Sylvester Kahyana, Eng Frank Kitumba, Dr James Ociti, Prof Abas Kiyimba and Dr Ronald Kakungulu Mayambala. The others are; Prof Fredrick Jjuuko, Allan Tacca, Solome Nakaweesi, Bishop Zac David Niringiye, Father Gaetano Batanyenda, and Mildred Apenyo, a daughter to prosecution witness Charles Dalton Opwonya.

According to Nyanzi, the witnesses were a categorization of people from a knowledge scope of cyber experts, law, human rights and media experts, senior citizens and minors, whose testimonies could be useful in analyzing the intrinsic worth of the case.

The witnesses were expected to appear before the court on July 9 and July 10. However, they never showed up forcing presiding Buganda Road Court Magistrate Gladys Kamasanyu to close the case on July 11. But Nyanzi, appealed to the High Court challenging the decision to close the case without giving her an opportunity to call for more witnesses through the media.

But Prosecution represented by Timothy Amerit and Janet Kitimbo asked the High court to dismiss application which they say is aimed at frustrating the impending judgement, expected on August 1, 2019. Amerit observed that the defense did not demonstrate any attempt to summon the witnesses, as alleged.

He added that the defence failed in its duty when the given sufficient facilitation through the issue of summons by the lower court adding that the case was delayed by the hostile, rude and provocative conduct of the accused and her counsel, Isaac Semakadde.

But Semakadde, who was joined by a new team of lawyers comprising; Julius Galisonga, John Isabirye, and Gerald Owinyi, emphasized that the lower court acted illegally and irregularly by making a premature closure of the defence case, denying Stella Nyanzi an opportunity to solicit for witnesses.

Lawyer John Isabirye faulted the court for failing to facilitate the compulsory attendance of witnesses that the accused consciously identified. He stated that by failing to serve to summon and issue arrest warrants, the court did not do its obligation, which is against the principle of equality.

The court will deliver its ruling on July 31, 2019.

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URN