A court Wednesday afternoon ordered the Uganda Police Force to immediately vacate the private Monitor Publications premises, citing overstepping of their search warrant.
Nakawa Magistrate Rosemary Bareebe, the same judicial officer who had earlier issued a search warrant to a one D/ASP Emmanuel Mbonimpa, reversed her decision.
“The search warrant issued to D/ASP Mbonimpa Emmanuel on May 20th 2013 in misc. Application No. 2005 of 2013 is hereby vacated in the exercise of the powers given to the court under S.11 (2) of the MCA, having been satisfied that in the process of execution of the said warrant the mandate given by the warrant was overstepped,” Ms Bareebe’s order reads in part.
The magistrate also ordered Mr Mbonimpa to return the search warrant to court today.
The police Monday closed down the Monitor newspaper and its two sister radio stations – KFM and Dembe FM, declaring the newspaper’s premises a “scene of crime”.
It was the second time in 10 years that the newspaper premises was surrounded by gun wielding policemen with an order to search the place for, as they claimed, Gen David Sejusa’s letter.
Security sources said the state was cracking the whip over the media’s reporting of the frenzy surrounding President Yoweir Museveni’s son Muhoozi Kainerugaba’s prospects for president – dubbed by the Coordinator of Intelligence Services, Gen Sejusa, as “Muhoozi Project".
Gen Sejusa kicked up a storm after Daily Monitor this month published a letter he wrote to the director of the Internal Security Organisation, Col. Ronnie Balya, asking that he investigate claims of plots to eliminate government officials opposed to “Muhoozi Project".
Courtesy: AFRICAREVIEW.com
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