Lawyers, Family of Treason Ex-Convict Demands his Production in Court

Lawyers and the family of ex-convict, Bright Africa Gabula are demanding his production before court if he has any case to answer.  

His lawyers of Wameli and Company Advocates say Gabula was picked up on April 25th, 2019 by operatives believed to be from Internal Security Organization-ISO and taken to Nakasero for unknown reasons. Godfrey Turyamusiima, one of the lawyers from the law firm, says Gabula has been incommunicado since then.  

In their habeas corpus application before the High Court Civil Division, the lawyers want government and Col. Kaka Bagyenda, the Director General of the Internal Security Organisation-ISO to produce Gabula before court.    

According to the application, Gabula left home for work on April 25th, 2019 in the morning. Around 10: 30 am, his wife received a phone call from mobile number 0785841171 inquiring where Gabula was. The caller later sent Shillings 52,000 to Gabula’s wife claiming he had left it behind with instructions that it is sent to her.

Gabula’s wife says they have not seen or heard from him since then. The ISO Director General Col. Kaka Bagyenda told URN this morning that he needs time to verify if Gabula was picked up by his men. "I'm not sure but let me cross check", Kaka told URN.   

About Gabula

Gabula was released from Luzira Prisons in 2013 where he had spent 27 years on death row following his conviction for treason. He was just 17-years-old when he was arrested from Makerere University in 1987.     

Gabula was a beneficiary of the Supreme Court judgment in the Susan Kigula versus Uganda case.

In its judgment, the Supreme Court directed that the sentence of death row inmates who had spent more than three years without being executed be committed to life imprisonment, which is 20 years. 

Gabula’s trouble started when he was a Senior Six student at Busoga College Mwiri where he participated in a BBC essay writing competition. He wrote an essay titled “Under Development in Africa: A case of False Economics”. 

He was invited to BBC headquarters in London a year later while at Makerere University where he was studying a Bachelor’s Degree in Commerce to pick his award as well as present his essay. 

 

According to the media reports, Gabula made profound statements in his presentation that “economics development is a matrix of five components, which include manufacturing, mining, construction, massive research, and massive investment in food production’’.

He argued that the service sector is not productive but instead its part of consumption; which implied that western economists had falsified facts to keep Africa in dependency on the developed West.  

It was at this moment that he mooted plans to start an Organization called ‘State Union’ with the help of some Americans who contributed the money he needed.  

However, the foreign exchange system had not yet transformed like it is today. Gabula reportedly approached the then Bank of Uganda governor. Dr. Sulaiman Kiggundu for help who in turned sent him to the then, ISO Director Lt Geoffrey Kamukama for vetting.  

Kamukama reportedly gave Gabula all the necessary documents but turned around and arrested him for treason when the USD 1.2M (UGX 4.5billion) arrived.   

High court will hear the application for his production in court on May, 8th, 2019.