Recently, the lawyer in charge of Dr. Kizza Besigye's case, Eron Kiiza was taken in after he was declared guilty for the charges of Contempt of Court.
This entire unrest began on January 7, 2025, when the General Court Martial in Makindye sentenced Eron Kiiza to nine months in jail after he was declared guilty of contempt of Court. He was found guilty while representing his clients, Kizza Besigye and Obeid Lutale
Ever since his arrest, many Ugandans, most especially those that work in the same field as him have come out to declare that the judicial system of Uganda regarding political cases is clearly unfair considering the declaration on Eron Kiiza. Many have even come out to condemn this arrest, stating that they are standing in solidarity with Eron against these unfair arrests.
In a recent episode of the political talk show 'The Capital Gang' which airs on Capital Radio however, the government spokesperson Ofwono Opondo came out and gave his point of view regarding the arrest made on Eron Kiiza, stating that the lawyer in question was given a rather light sentence and he does not see the reason as to why Ugandans in the Law community are making noise.
According to the spokesperson, Eron was given a "rather short sentence" after being found guilty of contempt of court, considering that he deserved a heavier sentence.
"That was a short sentence if you ask me." Ofwono Opondo declared
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Another panelist on the show, Derrick Wandera, further pointed out the tough choices facing those who want to support Kiiza. According to him, anyone that wants to support the unfairly arrested counsel has only three options which include appealing to the court martial, protesting like activist Agather did, or accepting the fact that Kiiza will serve his nine-month prison term.
Law stakeholders however argue that this is unfair considering that Kiiza was arrested and taken away without even being allowed to defend himself or hear the charges against him. It is also argued that he did not have a chance to speak about his situation before the sentence was handed to him.
Different lawyers as well as stakeholders in the field of Law still argue that there is a lot of unfairness surrounding legal cases relating to politics.
Ugandans online that have been following the case closely argue that the unfairness stems from the fact that the Government wants to keep Dr. Kizza Besigye under retention and the statement from the Government Spokesperson has further confirmed their suspicions.
