Judiciary to refurbish burnt Wobulenzi court
A section of the Wobulenzi Court premises that were torched by protesters in Luweero District, last week. PHOTO/DAN WANDERA
DAN WANDERA
The Judiciary has said it will refurbish Wobulenzi court that was recently burnt by rioters following the arrest of National Unity Platform (NUP) presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi, alias Bobi Wine.
The pledge was made by Chief Registrar Sarah Langa Siu on Monday when she paid a visit to the court to assess the damage.
Last Wednesday, rioters torched sections of the court, leaving furniture burnt to ashes. The case files were not affected.
“It is unfortunate that the protesters chose to attack the court premise that left the furniture destroyed. The attack of the court premise was uncalled for. Under all circumstances, the public institutions, including the courts of law, should not be targeted for destruction,” Ms Langa said.
“The Judiciary is going to refurbish the destroyed court room and ensure that we have good furniture at the court as soon as possible. We shall work with the landlord to have this work done quickly,” she added.
The chief registrar also promised to renovate the entire court premises. She also assured the public that all the court records are safe.
“I commend the police that saved the premises from total destruction, including the judicial officers that got back to work even when the premise looks disorganised,” Ms Langa said.
“We were left puzzled by the act since the courts serve everybody without discrimination. The records at court are public and shouldn’t be a target for destruction by any individual or group. We also assure the general public that all the records at the court are very safe and secure,” she added. Luweero Chief Magistrate Samuel Munobe, who oversees Wobulenzi court, told the visiting team from Kampala that despite the fear created by the rioters at court, his court staff have continued to work.
“We did not halt the services at court as the staff has gone on with their normal court business. It is true that we lost furniture, including windows that were smashed by the attackers, but we are grateful to the Chief Justice and his team for the quick response and the promise to renovate it,” Mr Munobe said.
About 30 people were arrested in Luweero following the countrywide public protests in reaction to the arrest of Mr Kyagulanyi in Luuka District while on his campaign trail. The same have since been charged before Luweero Chief Magistrate’s Court.
