By Frank Kamuntu
The Mukono Municipality legislator Betty Nambooze Bakireke through her lawyers Lukwago and Company Advocates has sued government for alleged torture during debate on the Constitutional Amendment Act 2018, which scrapped the presidential age limit.
Nambooze has instituted a suit in the Civil Division of High Court seeking compensation for the torture and brutality caused to her by soldiers and police officers on September 27th, 2017. She however, doesn’t state how much should be compensated but says needs general and exemplary damages for the psychological torture.
In her suit, Nambooze contends that on September, 27th, 2017, UPDF and police officers besieged parliament and ordered all MPs to park at the National Theatre. She explains that this restricted access to parliament. She however, notes that when she finally entered parliament, the speaker suspended 25 opposition leaning legislators.
Business halted for about 30 minutes to allow the Sergeant at arms to eject the suspended legislators including her. She says a group of plain cloth security operatives accessed the chambers and brutally ejected them. According to Nambooze, she was brutally arrested, tortured and subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment, which amounts to violation of her constitutional rights.
Through her lawyer, Nambooze contends that she later sought treatment at Mulago National Referral Hospital and was referred to India where she was operated as a result of the torture. According to the court documents, Nambooze was operated on July, 30th, 2018 on the left leg and spine by Dr. Vidyadhara S, a Spine Surgeon Consultant at Manipal Hospital India.
She now wants court to declare that her brutal arrest and torture was unconstitutional, humiliating and degrading. Court has summoned the Attorney General to file his defense within fifteen days before the case is allocated to a judge for hearing.
