The Judiciary has said that Mityana Chief Magistrates Court on Monday, April 27, 2020, declined to formally charge the area Member of Parliament Francis Zaake after he was taken to the Court on a stretcher and visibly ill.
The Mityana Chief Magistrate, Elias Kakooza ruled that the legislator was unfit to plead to the charges because of his ill health.
According to the Judiciary spokesperson Solomon Muyita, court also declined to grant the legislator bail following an application by his lawyer saying that will be handled after taking his plea.
Court reportedly ordered for the immediate transfer of the MP to a medical facility where he can be attended to until such a time when he will be fit to appear for plea taking. Prosecution alleges that on April 19th 2020 while at Buswabulongo village in Mityana district, Zaake distributed food to the community without taking necessary precautions to stop spread the coronavirus.
Court also heard that Zaake disobeyed lawful orders when he contravened presidential directives not to distribute food for fear of spreading Covid-19. As part of the Covid-19 preventive measures, President Yoweri Museveni directed that all relief support be handed over to the National Covid19 Taskforce for distribution and anybody found distributing food themselves shall be charged with Attempted murder.
