By Spy Uganda
People Power movement leader Robert Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine’s promoters Abbey Musinguzi aka Abbitex and Andrew Mukasa alias Bajjo Events, have dragged President Yoweri Museveni’s government to court over failure to provide food to Ugandans during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown.
Through their lawyer Anthony Wameli, the applicants who include; Bajjo, Abbitex, Aloysius Matovu Kizza and John Mbaziira, filed the suit at High court Civil Registry on Wednesday May 13, 2020.
In their petition, Bajjo, Abbitex and others pray to court to declare that government’s practice of distributing food to a few individuals and leaving out others is an infringement and threat to people’s right to equality and freedom from discrimination contrary to Article 21(2) and 43 of 1995 constitution.
Their petition states in part thus; “That failure of government of Uganda to provide and publish a well outlined program on provision and distribution of food is a threat to right to food and life.”
The applicants also want court to issue an order to government to provide and distribute adequate food to all Ugandans who are under the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown.
The Petition also prays to court to issue “An order directing the government to immediately distribute food that has been collected from well-wishers to members of the public without necessarily collecting and storing it at National/ District task force stores.”
“In the alternative an order directing government of Uganda to lift the lockdown until its able to provide adequate and timely food to all Ugandans without discrimination.”
As part of their supporting evidence for the petition, Bajjo, Abbitex and others allege that since March 18th, 2020 when the COVID-19 lockdown was declared by President Museveni several businesses were closed, leaving many Ugandans unemployed and stranded at home without money to buy food, yet government has since failed to provide for them.
The petitioners also fault government for prohibiting other financially able Ugandans to donate food to the suffering yet it doesn’t have the capacity to distribute food to all Ugandans affected by the COVID-19 Lockdown.
It should be noted that President Museveni directed the police, UPDF and LDU to arrest anyone found distributing food to Ugandans and charge them with attempted murder for risking the lives of Ugandans through exposing them to infection. He advised whoever has food to donate to hand it over to the National COVID-19 Task Force, such that it can determine when and how much is to be donated where.
