Troubled Rwenzururu king Charles Wesley Mumbere got a breather today as Jinja High Court judge Eva Luswata dismissed an appilication to have his bail hearing transferred to the International Crimes Division of the High Court.
According to the principal state attorney Racheal Bikholi, the application to which king Mumbere’s defence lawyers objected on Tuesday stated that he (Mumbere) faces terrorism and other grave charges only triable by the International Division of the High Court.
Court agreed with the submissions by Mumbere’s lawyers, led by Caleb Alaka, who argued that the king is not bound by the rules of the International Crimes Division of the High Court and that it is his constitutional right to have his bail application heard.
“The objection made by the respondent (state) is overruled and bail application will be heard. I will therefore conclude that at this point of the case, the applicant (king) is not subjected to International Crimes Division of the High Court rules,” the judge ruled.
“Therefore the applicant will qualify to have his bail application heard before me. In my view, it will be a violation of his constitutional rights to have his bail application transferred to another court.”
However, on hearing the ruling, the state unsuccessfully argued that given the International Crimes Division of the High Court rules, the bail hearing should also be heard from there.
Court is currently hearing the king’s bail application.
