Kampala: Dr. Kizza Besigye, together with Hajji Obeid Lutale and Capt. Denis Oola, has asked the High Court’s Criminal Division to reassign their case to a different judge, citing delays and concerns over impartiality.

In a letter dated August 15, 2025, filed by Lukwago & Co. Advocates on behalf of the applicants, the defense argued that the prolonged delay in fixing a hearing date — despite the case having been filed in April 2025 — coupled with the dismissal of their earlier bail application, has raised “serious concerns regarding procedural fairness and the possibility of judicial partiality.”

The lawyers pointed to the Constitution (Recusal of Judicial Officers) (Practice) Directions, 2019, which require a judge to step aside where a “reasonable apprehension of bias” exists, judged from the perspective of an objective observer.

“Justice must not only be done but must also be seen to be done,” the defense stressed, adding that public confidence in the impartiality of proceedings had been undermined. 

The applicants requested the trial judge to voluntarily recuse himself and for the Head of the Criminal Division to reassign the matter “to safeguard impartial adjudication.”

Meanwhile, a hearing notice issued on August 15, 2025, confirmed that the case has been fixed for September 1, 2025, at 11:00 a.m. before Justice Emmanuel Baguma.

Besigye, a four-time presidential candidate, and his co-accused face charges in connection with alleged subversive activities.

They have been on remand for over 180 days, prompting their lawyers to earlier seek mandatory bail, which was dismissed.

The latest motion for recusal highlights mounting tensions between the defense and the judiciary over the pace and handling of the high-profile case. The matter now awaits determination on whether the presiding judge will step aside or proceed with the September hearing.

By ChimpReports