By Charles Etukuri

They were already locked inside their cells, but when prisoners at Murchison Bay Prison heard that Soroti Municipality Member of Parliament Mike Mukula had arrived, they erupted in joyful noises.

Mukula has a big following in Murchison Bay.

The last time the former junior health minister was at the same facility, he organised for the wards to be given a face-lift after his release, which made him a hero there.

The officer in charge was ready for the high profile prisoner, having received a call soon after the sentence was announced.

Preparation involved finding better accommodation and where possible, relocate some of the prisoners in the ward where he was going to stay.

At 5:30pm on Friday, Mukula was received and taken through the necessary checks. After being counseled, his belt was taken away and he was then led to the B block reserved for the affluent prisoners.

Saturday morning, the prison authorities were restricting prisoners from flocking in to see Mukula.

“We are only allowing his lawyers,” the prisons spokesperson, Frank Baine, told New Vision, maintaining that it was not a visitation day.

Baine said they had taken a decision to keep Mukula at Murchison Bay and not the upper prison, because his case was not a serious offence.

“If we feel his security or that of our facility can be compromised, we shall transfer him,” he said.

Arrangements were being made to get him the yellow uniform and a new prisons number, which will serve as his prison identity for the next four years.