Assaulted traffic officer sues Gen Kyaligonza, wants Shs200m compensation

KAMPALA. A police officer who was allegedly assaulted by Rtd Maj Gen Matayo Kyaligonza and his two guards has run to High Court Civil Division seeking to be compensated over Shs200m for damages.
Ms Esther Namaganda, a traffic officer, in her law suit is seeking to recover over Shs1 million as special damages, Shs200 million as general and punitive damages for the injuries, physiological and psychological trauma and inconveniences, embarrassment as a result of the alleged assault occasioned to her by the 73-year-old, who is also Uganda’s ambassador to Burundi.

Ms Namaganda states that on February 24, 2019 while she was on duty at Seeta controlling traffic flow from Kampala to Mukono with the help of her two colleagues - police constable Solomon Nkubito and William Ariku- suddenly a car belonging to Rtd Maj Gen Kyaligonza coming from Kampala approached her and indicated that it was going back to Kampala implying that the driver was making a U-turn that was forbidden by law.

She further narrates that the defendant's driver insisted on making the illegal U-turn to which she signaled to him to make a proper turn at Kobil fuel station but they defied.
"To the utter shock of the plaintiff (Namaganda), the defendant's aides jumped out of the car and assaulted the plaintiff by holding her collar in a bid to get her off the road all at the watch of the defendant," Ms Namaganda narrates in the plaint.

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“A scuffle ensued for about five minutes where the defendant also came out of his car, insulted the plaintiff calling her "stupid sergeant" and then grabbed the plaintiff's line yard which tore off two buttons from her blouse exposing her chest and this inflicted pain on her left breast."
Ms Namaganda says that as a result of the said assault, she was embarrassed, sustained severe headache, pain in the eye and ear thus proceeding to undergo treatment.

She asserts that she underwent various medical examination and scans from various hospitals which included; International Hospital Kampala (IHK), International Diagnostic Centre (IDC), Shine International Medical and Surgical Centre where she received treatment of the injuries at her cost and inconveniences all occasioned by the defendant and his aides.
Ms Namaganda asserts that the defendant being a diplomat failed to reign on his aides from assaulting her but rather joined them too in the gruesome acts.
Through her lawyers of Thomas & Michael Advocates, Ms Namaganda says that she incurred costs in her medication and that the defendant should compensate her in terms of special damages.

Court documents indicate that criminal proceedings vide criminal case Number 312/2019 have been instituted in Mukono Magistrate's court against the defendant and his aides for assault occasioning grievous bodily harm on the plaintiff and that the proceedings are ongoing.
However, the magistrate's court has since issued an arrest warrant against the defendant and his aides after failing to turn up in court to have their charges read to them.

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