By Leilah Bbaale
Buganda Road Court Grade One Magistrate, Siena Owomugigisha has further remanded four Kyambogo University students who were arrested last week at Parliamentary Avenue in Kampala protesting the decision by some banks to finance the East African Crude Oil Pipe Line Project (EACOP).
The controversial oil pipeline is intended to transport crude oil from Uganda’s oil fields in Bunyoro region to Tanga Port in Tanzania. Once completed, the pipeline will be the longest-heated crude oil pipeline in the world.
The students have been identified as Benjamin Akiso, Wasswa Alex, Abduh Twaib Magambo, and Kajubi Maktum all students of Kyambongo University.
They were first produced before court on Friday last week and were remanded to Luzira prison on charges of common nuisance.
Prosecution states that the group and others still at large on September 15, 2023, at Parliamentary Avenue, did an unauthorized act by carrying placards reading; Stop EACOP, Standard, Stanbic Bank do not finance EACOP, stop violation of human rights, on the streets by causing inconvenience to the public in the exercise of common rights.
They have been ordered to report back to court on Wednesday, September 20, 2023, for hearing of the case.
This is after the prosecution led by Lydia Nakato informed court that investigations into the matter are complete and that they are already to start prosecuting all the accused persons.
