The Buganda Road Chief Magistrate’s Court has rejected jailed lawyer Male Mabirizi Kiwanuka’s application seeking relaxation of the bail conditions imposed on him, leaving him in custody despite paying the required Shs2 million cash deposit.
In a ruling delivered this week, Chief Magistrate Ritah Kidasa Neumbe dismissed Mabirizi’s request to have five conditions attached to his mandatory bail reviewed and removed.
Mabirizi had been granted mandatory bail on August 21, but his release remained subject to several conditions that he later asked court to reconsider.
The lawyer reportedly argued that the conditions should be relaxed to allow him to secure his release after meeting the financial requirement. However, the court was not persuaded by his application.
In her ruling, Neumbe stated that Mabirizi had failed to demonstrate any change in circumstances that would justify varying the conditions previously imposed.
The decision means that payment of the Shs2 million cash deposit alone is not sufficient to secure his release, as the other bail requirements remain in force.
Mabirizi will therefore remain in custody unless he fulfils the outstanding conditions or successfully challenges the court’s decision through the appropriate legal process.
The ruling is another setback for the embattled lawyer, who has continued to pursue his release through court applications. His continued detention now depends on compliance with the bail terms that the magistrate has declined to relax.
