The Highcourt in Kampala has dismissed with costs an application in which Presidential aspirant, Rtd Lt. Gen Henry Tumukunde sought orders to restrain the Uganda Police from summoning and threatening to arrest him.Justice Musa Ssekaana has ruled that in the absence of material evidence adduced by Gen Tumukunde that police and its CID boss AIP Grace Akullo have violated his personal liberties, he ( the Judge ) is also reluctant to interfere with the constitutional mandate of the Uganda police to detect crime, preserve law and order, and to protect lives and property.Justice Ssekaana has further explained in his ruling that Gen Tumukunde has not made out a case against Police and Akullo before the court which would warrant the issuance of an injunction because the Gen only states in his supporting affidavit that the summons he received disclosed no offence and therefore, he does not know whether he is being summoned as a witness or a suspect.Cout has then enlightened Gen Tumukunde that it can only extend its protective hand to a citizen who is being wronged or deprived of his property without following the law but rather not to issue orders that perpetuate a threatened crime which has been detected by police.The Judge has then concluded that Gen Tumukunde who had asked for a compensation of UGX 70 million from Akullo and Uganda police for violating his rights to free speech and association instead pays costs to the duo for maliciously dragging them before the court.Tumukunde Through his lawyer Anthony Wameeli on 24th August petitioned the court seeking a declaration that the alleged arrest threats issued to him by the state through summons signed by Grace Akullo are a violation of his fundamental rights to association, expression of a view and freedom from discrimination.Tumukunde had contended that unless the court intervenes and stops this imminent threat by the state to arrest him, his on-going countrywide consultations to secure 3/4 of signatures from at least 100 districts of Uganda in order to stand for the presidency will be interfered with.
In light of today’s court ruling, the police can go ahead if it so wishes to renew its summons requiring Gen Tumukunde to appear at CID Hqs in Kibuli to explain why he held several meetings with Army veterans on issues relating to politics.To Tumukunde, the summons that disclosed no offence against him were also copied to the Chief of Defence Forces and the UPDF which leaves him to wonder what business he has with the Army yet he officially retired from the Force in 2015.Tumukunde argues that there is no law broken in meeting Army veterans since he duly picked nomination forms as a presidential aspirant and notified the Electoral commission of his intentions to consult and traverse the entire country looking for the required signatures.The retired General who recently launched his political vehicle hoping to unseat the incumbent president, Museveni contends being arrested for meeting the veteran wing of the UPDF is a mission to suffocate his political ambitions since so many politicians and the ruling party NRM has on several occasions involved veterans in political activities and none of them has ever been summoned at CID.
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