KAMPALA – Mukono Municipality Member of Parliament, Betty Nambooze Bakireke has dragged government to court for alleged violence and torture caused to her during the amendment of the presidential age limit in 2017.
Nambooze who was moving with the help of a walking stick appeared on Thursday, August 29, at the High Court Civil Division in company of her lawyer Erias Lukwago filed a lawsuit seeking a declaration that the brutality, humiliation and embarrassment meted out onto her amounted to inhuman and degrading treatment under Article 44 of the Constitution.
In the court documents, Nambooze states that on September 21, 2017 Parliament was besieged and blocked by the army(UPDF) and Police who ordered all Members of Parliament to park at the National Theatre which made their work at the parliament difficult.
She further states that on September 27, Hon Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda raised a query about the same but the Speaker just turned against him and suspended twenty-five MPs with her inclusive.
Nambooze claims that no sooner had the speaker risen to exit from the chambers than several security personnel stormed the chambers and started molesting several MPs on the opposition side.
The legislator contends that as she was trying to depart with Hon Moses Kasibante they saw Hon Francis Zaake who appeared to be unconscious, however, in the process of helping him they where intercepted by the Kampala Metropolitan Commander Frank Mwesigye who alleged that they were escaping.
“That while I was heading back to the lobby of parliament, I was again intercepted by some mean looking security personnel who pounced at me, violently charged and dragged me towards the South wing of parliament,” Nambooze says.
She states that the security personnel violently threw her down where she landed on her back as they continued beating and kicking her thereby subjecting her to inhuman and degrading treatment and grievous bodily harm,
According to the court documents, Nambooze states that she later sought for medication at Mulago Hospital where she was later referred to India where she was operated from as a result of torture.
Nambooze was operated on her left leg and Spain by Dr Vidyadhara S, a Spine Surgeon Consultant at Manipal Hospitals India on July, 30th, 2018.
She does not state how much she wants to be compensated but wants an award of general and exemplary damages for the psychological torture ridicule, mental anguish and gross inconveniences for which she holds the attorney general liable.
