Wakilii

His Majesty Omusinga Mumbere v Uganda (Criminal Misc. Application No. 075 of 2016)

High Court · [2017] UGHCCRD 12 · 2017 Preliminary Objection Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Preliminary objection to jurisdiction raised in a bail application arising from criminal charges including terrorism
Decision
Bail application to proceed to hearing on merits

Observed later treatment

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Holding

The High Court has jurisdiction to hear a bail application for an accused charged with terrorism alongside other offences where the accused has not yet been committed to the International Crimes Division. The ICD Practice Directions 2011 and ICD Rules 2016 apply to proceedings within the ICD jurisdiction, but do not oust the High Court's inherent constitutional jurisdiction under Articles 138 and 139 to hear bail applications. The constitutional right to apply for bail under Article 23(6)(a) cannot be restricted by administrative directives. The preliminary objection was overruled.

Outcome

Bail application to proceed to hearing on merits

Facts

The applicant, His Majesty Omusinga Mumbere Charles Wesley, was charged with various offences including terrorism in Jinja Chief Magistrate's Court arising from incidents in Kasese. He filed a bail application before the High Court at Jinja. At the hearing on 9 January 2017, the respondent raised a preliminary objection without prior notice, arguing that the application should be heard by the High Court International Crimes Division which has jurisdiction over terrorism offences under the Anti Terrorism Act 2002. The respondent argued that the ICD Practice Directions 2011 and ICD Rules 2016 required bail applications in terrorism cases to be heard by ICD judges. The applicant had not yet been committed to the ICD for trial. The applicant's counsel opposed the objection, arguing that the High Court retained inherent unlimited jurisdiction under Articles 138 and 139 of the Constitution, and that the ICD directions were purely administrative and could not override constitutional jurisdiction.

Issues

  1. Whether the High Court has jurisdiction to hear a bail application in respect of an accused charged with terrorism offences, or whether such application must be heard by the International Crimes Division.
  2. Whether the ICD Practice Directions 2011 and ICD Rules 2016 oust the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court to hear bail applications for accused persons not yet committed to the ICD.
  3. Whether designation by the Principal Judge is required for a High Court judge to hear a bail application involving terrorism charges.

Orders

  • Preliminary objection overruled.
  • Bail application to proceed to hearing before the High Court.

Rules and key headnotes

Bail — Jurisdiction — High Court versus International Crimes Division
The High Court retains inherent jurisdiction to hear bail applications for accused persons charged with terrorism offences who have not yet been committed to the International Crimes Division, notwithstanding the ICD's jurisdiction over terrorism trials.
Practice Directions — Scope and Effect — Relationship to Constitutional Jurisdiction
The ICD Practice Directions 2011 and ICD Rules 2016 are administrative and procedural orders for the proper and efficient administration of justice which cannot amend or supersede constitutional provisions or oust the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court.
Fundamental Rights — Right to Bail — Article 23(6)(a)
The constitutional right to apply for bail under Article 23(6)(a) of the Constitution entitles a person to apply to any competent court and cannot be restricted by administrative directives that would require transmission of the application to a different division of the High Court.
International Crimes Division — Application of Rules — Uncommitted Accused
The ICD Rules 2016 apply to matters and proceedings under the jurisdiction of the ICD. Rule 54 which governs bail in the ICD applies only to accused persons who have been committed for trial before the Division, not to those whose cases are still at mention stage in subordinate courts.
Bail Applications and Trial — Parallel Proceedings
A bail application and the trial of an accused person are parallel proceedings which should be regarded as such. The practice of courts encourages that different judicial officers handle the bail application and trial to eliminate all possibility of bias.
High Court — Inherent Jurisdiction — Articles 138 and 139
The High Court possesses inherent unlimited jurisdiction under Articles 138 and 139 of the Constitution which is not diminished by the establishment of specialized divisions such as the International Crimes Division, which is an administrative arrangement for convenience to hear certain cases.
Bail — Timing of Application — Section 14 Trial on Indictments Act
Under Section 14 of the Trial on Indictments Act, release on bail may be granted at any stage of the proceedings, including the pre-committal period.

Legislation cited (13)

Cases cited (2)

  • Omar Awadh Omar v Attorney General (Consolidated Constitutional Petitions Nos. 55 and 56 of 2011)
  • Uganda v Hassan Hussein and 18 Others (Criminal Case No. 1 of 2010)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

His Majesty Omusinga Mumbere v Uganda (Criminal Misc. Application No. 075 of 2016) [2017] UGHCCRD 12 (12 January 2017)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.