A pre-trial hearing for Members of Parliament Allan Ssewanyana, Makindye West and Muhammad Ssegirinya, Kawempe North MP has been adjourned to March 06, 2023.
The MPs were supposed to appear before the International Crimes Division Court but failed to show up on grounds that they are both sick and hospitalized since getting bail last week at the Masaka High Court.
On Monday last week, High Court Judge Lawrence Tweyanze gave the legislators a cash bail of 20 million shillings each after the State withdrew its objection to an application filed by the MPs . They were also granted bail on grounds that they needed medical attention which prison facilities were not providing.
The Mps presented three sureties each who were bonded 50 million shillings each.
The prosecution alleges that the two MPs and four others physically participated and conspired with other people to execute machete murders in Greater Masaka with the intent to intimidate the public for political, religious, social, or economic gains.
They are also facing charges of terrorism and aiding terrorism, which they allegedly coordinated between January and August 2021 in the greater Masaka sub-region.
Court on Monday sat for the Pre hearing trial at the International Crimes Division but both MPs were visibly absent from the court.
Presiding Judge Alice Komuhangi Khauka was compelled to adjourn the matter because the implicated MPs were absent. However, the Mps were each represented by surieties who informed the judge that they are currently under hospitalization.
Kira Municipality MP Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda one of the sureties for Ssewanyana presented medical documents to court showing that the Mp is currently unstable and admitted in a Kampala based hospital.
Ssegirinya on the other hand was represented by his elder brother Walugembe Robert who also informed court that the Mp is not in stable health condition.
Samuel Muyiizi, the lead lawyer for the Mps told journalists outside court that the law requires an accused person to be present for proceedings at all times or present formal permission to cancel. He says both sureties presented medical reports from hospital proving the accused are indeed unwell.
He confirmed that the Mps are indeed unwell as he visited Ssewanyana and Ssegirinya on February 16 and 17 respectively in hospital.
He also stated that they had previously applied for a Constitutional Court to interpret whether the act of proceedings based on similar charges with similar facts in different courts of Masaka and ICD in Kampala does not cause double jeopardy and miscarriage of justice.
Muyizi says the court allowed them to file the petition but it is not ready because they had no access to the Mps in prison for them to append their signatures.