By Spy Uganda
The High Court has given security agencies seven days to establish the whereabouts of missing National Unity Platform (NUP) Deputy President Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, after declining to immediately issue a writ of habeas corpus over his disappearance.
In a ruling delivered on Wednesday, Justice Collins Acellam directed the respondents to conclude investigations into Kivumbi’s whereabouts and file a report before the court within seven days, saying the court could not compel the production of a person whose detaining authority had not been identified.
The ruling comes nearly two weeks after Kivumbi disappeared on July 10, shortly after being released on bail in a terrorism case. His lawyers allege he was intercepted by armed men at a police checkpoint in Mpigi District and has not been seen since.
Justice Acellam noted that the Uganda Police Force had denied holding Kivumbi in custody and that there was insufficient evidence before the court to determine who, if anyone, was detaining him.
The judge said that while a writ of habeas corpus is intended to compel a detaining authority to produce a detainee before court, such an order would not be effective where the alleged custodian remains unknown.
Instead, the court directed the Chief of Defence Forces, the Inspector General of Police and the Attorney General who are named as respondents in the application to investigate Kivumbi’s disappearance and submit an affidavit detailing the outcome within seven days.
The matter was adjourned to July 29, when the respondents are expected to update the court on the progress of their investigations.
Following the ruling, NUP Secretary General and Kivumbi’s lawyer, David Lewis Rubongoya, criticized the decision, arguing that it extended the period during which his client remained unaccounted for.
Meanwhile, NUP President Robert Kyagulanyi, also known as Bobi Wine, renewed calls for Kivumbi’s release during the party’s sixth anniversary celebrations, maintaining that his deputy had been unlawfully detained.
Beyond the police affidavit denying custody, authorities have not publicly commented on the claims surrounding Kivumbi’s disappearance.
