Exiled satirical novelist, Kakwenza Rukirabashaija has asked his lawyers to legally take on the Buganda Road Chief Magistrate who is handling the offensive communication case against him.
In a March,2, communication to his lawyers of Kiiza and Mugisha Advocates, Kakwenza says he is baffled that court has continued with the case despite a ruling by the Constitutional Court annulling Section 25 of the Computer Misuse Act through which he was being tried.
“If the Chief Magistrate has continued to feign ignorance of the effect of that ruling on my case, and has stubbornly refused to halt the case and release my passport, then I should not be the platform on which to practice his remote controlled pig-headedness,”Kakwenza says in his communication to the lawyers.
The Constitutional Court last year ruled that Section 25 of the Computer Misuse Act, 2011 which criminalized offensive communication was no longer an offence since it was being used to curtail freedom of speech.
“I find that the impugned Section is unjustifiable as it curtails the freedom of speech in a free and democratic society. Secondly Section 25 of the Computer Misuse Act does not specify what conduct constitutes offensive communication. To that extent it does not afford sufficient guidance for legal debate. Thirdly it is vague, overly broad and ambiguous. Therefore, I find that the impugned section is inconsistent with and/or in contravention of Article 29 of the Constitution,” Justice Kakuru said in the lead judgement.
The court said that in a democratic and free society, prosecuting people for the content of their communication is a violation of what falls within guarantees of freedom of expression in a democratic society.
In the communication to his lawyers, Kakwenza says that whereas he might have respect for the institution of the judiciary “but my intolerance for errant judicial officers who are towering geniuses of incompetence is conspicuous.”
“Nor do I have tolerance for public officials whose work ethics are tethered to the lawlessness of nincompoops in the statehouse who have used their offices to impinge on my imprescriptible rights. Such kind of judicial incompetence has incurred a disproportionate disadvantage on my freedom of movement as a Ugandan citizen and an internationally acclaimed author who travels often for book readings and other academic public lectures/gatherings.”
He says it is high time he takes on the Chief Magistrate who has insisted on proceeding with the case, despite an earlier pronouncement by the Constitutional Court.
“As the great legal panjandrum of the 21st Century, please proceed with all necessary legal actions. I eagerly await further updates on the progress of the matter.”
The charges
Kakwenza is being accused of offensive communication contrary to section 25 of the Computer Misuse Act 2011 for allegedly abusing President Museveni and the Commander of Land Forces, Lt Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba through social media.
He has since been granted bail and consequently fled the country to exile in Germany.
