The Democratic Party has called on the Government to release a number of people they refer to as political prisoners who were arrested following the 2020 riots.

The call came a day after the High Court in Masaka, presided over by Justice Lawrence Tweyanze, granted bail to two Members of Parliament, Muhammad Ssegirinya of Kawempe North and Allan Ssewanyana of Makindye West.  

The MPs are battling a string of charges, including murder, attempted murder and aiding, and abetting terrorism.

Kawempe North MP Muhammad Ssegirinya and his Makindye West counterpart Allan Ssewanyana were arrested in September 2021 and have been battling a range of charges in court since then.

However, after spending over one year in prison, the two legislators were freed on bail by Justice Lawrence Tweyanze, the resident judge at the Masaka High Court Circuit

Ismail Kirya, the leader of the Uganda Young Democrats (UYD), the youth wing of the Democratic Party, has expressed gratitude to the court for granting bail to the two MPs, who claims are political prisoners

Kirya urged the government to release other political prisoners especially the members of National Unity Platform party who were arrested during the 2020 November riots which occurred ahead of the 2021 elections. The riots followed the arrest of NUP party President Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu who police said had violated COVI9-19 campaign guidelines as he campaigned for the presidency.    

For his party, the DP Presidential Secretary, Fred Mwesigwa asked the courts to speed up the process of hearing the cases against the MPs and others so as to bring justice

The MPs are answering a string of charges including murder, attempted murder, aiding, and abetting terrorism stemming from their alleged involvement in the killings which occurred between March and June 2021, in the greater Masaka region. More than 20 lives were lost, largely in the hands of machete wielding assailants.