The Katikkiro of Buganda, Charles Peter Mayiga, has added his voice to the intense debate on whether bail on capital offences should be scrapped.
Mayiga, while meeting Buganda loyalists from Buddu County in greater Masaka said, every accused person deserves bail until he/she is proven guilty by a competent court of law.
Speaking during the Fourth Annual Benedicto Kiwanuka memorial lecture at the High Court grounds in Kampala this week, President Museveni insisted that those accused of murder and other grave crimes should not be granted bail.
According to Mayiga who is a lawyer by profession, a person being accused of murder does not mean that he is guilty. He says the accused person deserves a right to be bailed as investigations go on till the person is presented before court to prove whether he or she is guilty or not.
The Katikkiro has also decried the re-arrest of people who have been bailed out citing it as a desecration of the constitution.
He has also asked for the leaders not to involve politics in the investigations of the panga wielding gangs who have killed over 20 people in greater Masaka.
Katikkiro Mayiga said these in response to President Museveni’s demand for removal of court bail. This comes after the brutal re-arrest of MPs Allan Ssewanyana and Mohammed Ssegirinya after being released on bail, after being accused of participating in the Masaka killings.
