Uganda People’s Congress (UPC) party president Jimmy Akena has opposed the scraping of bail for suspects battling capital offences.

While addressing the media at the party head offices on Uganda House in Kampala Tuesday,  Akena said under the law, every accused person has a right to apply for bail.

“The conditions that one has to apply for bail have been clarified by the judiciary and if there is need for changes, it should be done by the Chief Justice with the help of the judiciary,” Akena said.

He said, “I don’t even think that scraping off bail should be rushed into but we should look at it carefully and come up with a long-lasting solution.”

 The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Jane Abodo on Tuesday said the law on bail is very clear, adding that suspects have a right to apply for bail but whether it is granted or not, is at the discretion of a judicial officer, meaning each case should be handled on its merits

“We have bail because suspects are taken to court before investigations are complete.  Therefore, if we can empower the police and the office of the DPP, who are operating at 40% and have investigations completed with prosecutions guidance, then a week is enough to handle a case,” Abodo said.

Akena said on Tuesday as the world commemorated world teachers’ day but this came at the time when all of Uganda are suffering due to covid-19 the pandemic lockdowns, with unprecedented enforcement of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).

He noted that all educational institutions are terribly affected and struggling to meet the salaries of their teaching and non-teaching staff.

“As a country, we need to overcome the stress and hardship that covid-19 has imposed on us. The government should devise means of helping the education sector,” Akena said.

He added, “The pandemic has pushed the private sector in education into serious liquidity challenges and government should look at how best to revive these institutions to help this sector.”