• Updated by Faith Barbara Namagembe at 2108 EAT on Tuesday 28th June 2022.

The Law Development Center (LDC) court has dismissed a case in which two activists were accused of inciting violence by dropping a casket demanding the immediate resignation of ministry of Health permanent secretary Dr Diana Atwine.

Augustine Ojobile and Sharif Kawooya were arrested in August from Kasubi and Kawempe respectively. The coffin had placards with words targeting Atwine. “Covid-19 is not a profit venture,” read on the placards.

Today Tuesday, grade one magistrate Marion Ninsiima dismissed the case after repeated adjournments due to the prosecution’s failure to adduce the required evidence against the suspects. Earlier on, state attorney Joy Apolot had asked court for more time to produce other witnesses.

But Ninsiima rejected the request on grounds that the case has been in court for a year and the state had failed to produce any of the witnesses before the court whenever needed. She also said that the actions of the state were wasting the court’s time and delaying justice for the accused.

Since November, the case has been adjourned four times. The case was adjourned to January 11 after the prosecution said that it had not completed investigations into the case. In January, it was adjourned twice after the prosecution failed to produce Atwine in court.

Atwine was given the last chance to appear in court and testify in the case or else the case would be