Pre-trial hearing in Besigye treason case set for Monday
Justice Emmanuel Baguma of the Criminal Division of the High Court fixed the hearing for June 1, after the State withdrew an application seeking permission to conceal the identities of six prosecution witnesses.
Besigye and Lutale are jointly charged with treason and misprision of treason alongside Capt. Denish Oyaa Oola, who is attached to the Armoured Brigade of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces. The offence attracts a maximum sentence of death upon conviction.
KAMPALA - The pre-trial hearing in the treason case against four-time presidential candidate Dr Kizza Besigye and his aide, Hajji Obeid Lutale, will start next week on Monday (June 1).
Besigye and Lutale are jointly charged with treason and misprision of treason alongside Capt. Denish Oyaa Oola, who is attached to the Armoured Brigade of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces. The offence attracts a maximum sentence of death upon conviction.
Justice Emmanuel Baguma of the Criminal Division of the High Court fixed the hearing for June 1, after the State withdrew an application seeking permission to conceal the identities of six prosecution witnesses.
Chief State Attorney Richard Birivumbuka told court on Thursday (May 28) that the application had delayed the commencement of the main trial.
“The hearing of the application has taken more than three weeks as the defence cross-examined a senior State Attorney from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, Joseph Kyomuhendo. The State has resolved to withdraw the application,” Birivumbuka said.
The judge granted the state’s request to withdraw the application, observing that since the accused persons took plea on September 30, last year, court has been handling several applications, which have delayed the hearing of the main case.
Justice Baguma subsequently directed that the pre-trial hearing be conducted on June 1, 2026, at 11:00am under Section 66 of the Trial on Indictments Act, together with the selection of assessors under Section 67 of the same law.
The case
Prosecution alleges that Besigye, Lutale, Oola and others, still at large, between 2023 and 2024 in various countries, including Switzerland, Greece, Kenya and in Kampala (Uganda), contrived to overturn the Government of Uganda by force of arms.
According to the charge sheet, the accused, knowing that another person intended to commit treason, did not give information to Ugandan authorities to prevent the commission of treason, which tantamounts to misprision of treason.