The under fire flamboyant Member of Parliament for Mbarara North Robert Mwesigwa Rukari has written to the Inspector General of Police registering his complaint against police officers that effected his arrest.
Rukari in a letter dated March 7, 2023, which Eagle Online has seen says ASP Kharim Mukiibi was unprofessional during his arrest as he didn’t disclose himself and the reason for arrest to the MP.
“My name is Mwesigwa Robert Rukari Member of Parliament representing Mbarara City North Constituency. I wish to officially register my complaint against the above-mentioned police officers for their unprofessional conduct to my person. On March 1, 2o23, I was arrested at around 4.30pm between Bhatia Chambers and Jubilee Insurance Centre Building along Parliament Avenue as I was coming from a meeting with the creditor’s lawyer Stanley Omwony to discuss a new debt payment plan” Rukari who came out of Luzira prisons after pay part of the loan writes.
He further continues “The arrest was effected by a Court Bailiff Moses Kirunda together with ASP Kharim Mukiibi and another police constable whose name I couldn’t readily establish armed with a pistol and both dressed in an FFU blue and white anti-riot police uniforms. Without being shown a warrant of arrest, I was ordered to abandon my vehicle on the street and forced into a waiting private car Toyota Mark X, driven to Commercial Court”.
In his complaint says to his surprise, even after the Assistant Registrar committed him to prison, at around 6.30pm, the same police officers and court Bailiff Moses Kirunda ordered him back to the same private car without a prison’s officer. Rukari says in total disregard of traffic rules, they drove dangerously at a terrific speed and in the opposite direction of the road towards Luzira Prison, putting his life in danger.
“In a dramatic fashion, at Garden City round about, ASP Mukiibi jumped out of the vehicle and stopped all the vehicles including the Prison’s bus then shifted me to the Prison bus. This is therefore, to request your good office to establish whether the said police were authorized to participate in the civil court processes in the manner described above” Rukari wrote to IGP and copied the Police Chief of Staff.
Background
Rukari was March 1, taken before Commercial section of the High Court under execution of a decree which was made and pronounced by execution miscellaneous application No77 of 2022 and by which decree it was ordered that the said should pay a decretal sum and cost 702,000,000.
Mwesigwa Rukari’s arrest and subsequent remand was due to failure to pay Shs702 million to city businessman Gerald Kalungi.
“And whereas the respondent has neither obeyed the decree nor satisfied the Court that he will not be committed. You are hereby committed the said Mwesigwa Robert into civil prison and keep him therein for a period not exceeding six months until the said decree shall be fully satisfied or the said Mwesigwa Robert shall otherwise be entitled to be released according to the provisions of Section 43 of CPA” reads the committal of respondent to civil prison.
It further continues “The Court does hereby fix Shs5,000 as allowance for the subsistence of the said Mwesigwa Robert during his confinement under this warrant of committal”
On December 30, this website exclusively revealed that Mr Mwesigwa Rukaari was having sleepless nights as several money lenders had ganged up against him demanding for repayment of loans the politician obtained from them.
Rukari’s subsequent release and payment of Shs300 million was negotiated by Deputy Speaker, Thomas Tayebwa, Amb. Adonia Ayebale among others.
