Kwania Court Denies Bail to Seven UPC Supporters

UPC supporters appear before Aduku Grade One Magistrate court on Thursday.

Aduku Grade One Magistrate’s Court in Kwania District denied bail to seven supporters of the Uganda People’s Congress and remanded them to Kwania Government Prison. Aduku Magistrate Smith Ogwal, on Thursday, read to the suspects seven counts.

The charges include assault occasioning grievous harm to SP Kadogo Paul, the Kwania District Police Commander; Abraham Aturu, the Kwania Deputy Resident District Commissioner; TC Baraka Emmanuel; TC Ayepa Acigue; Corporal Okori Emmanuel and TC Wabire Abudu, police officers attached to Kwania Central Police Station.

The suspects also face a charge of allegedly breaking the windscreen of a police patrol vehicle, registration number UP 7669.

The prosecution alleges that on August 10th, 2026, at Acut Trading Centre in Apire Parish, the accused persons and others still at large assaulted the officials while they were carrying out their official duties, leaving them with serious injuries. The prosecution says the alleged acts contravened Article 202 and Article 221(B) of the Constitution of the Republic of Uganda.

The suspects denied all the charges and applied for bail. However, Magistrate Ogwal rejected their bail applications and remanded them to Kwania Government Prison until August 27th, 2026, when the case will come up again.

In his ruling on the bail application, Magistrate Ogwal said the case was political in nature and that he needed time to scrutinize the matter before granting bail.

Translation: “No one can order me, not even the President. The President heads the Executive, the Chief Justice heads the Judiciary, while Oboth Oboth heads Parliament. Some people are selling their cows for 100,000 and 200,000 shillings in the guise of bribing the judge. The law is very clear: if you break it, it punishes you. I have heard the bail application; give me time to work on it.”

The suspects were arrested by police at Kwania Central Police Station between August 10th and 13th, 2026, following violence and chaos between UPC and NRM supporters during the election of an LC2 Chairperson in Apire Parish, Aduku Sub-county.

The suspects are Patrick Oruru, 22, of Teopok Village; Tom Ebong, 51, of Alongomula; Tony Otim, 22, of Angolenyang; Nelson Waca, 52; Samuel Otoo, 52; Zakayo Ongol, 42; and Dickens Ogwal, all residents of Apire A Village.

The suspects first appeared before Aduku Grade One Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, August 18th, 2026, and were subsequently remanded to Kwania Government Prison up to Thursday, 20th August 2026, for mention of the case. Residents who turned up in the court argued that bail is a constitutional right and should be granted regardless of political, religious, or tribal differences.