Uganda’s state minister of labor was on Monday remanded to prison after being charged with attempted murder.
The minister – Mwesigwe Rukutana was arrested on Saturday after he grabbed a gun from his bodyguards and shooting towards a crowd who was supporting his political rival – Naome Kabasharira.
The incident occurred after the minister realize he had lost to his competitor in local elections in the Ntungamo district in Western Uganda, where he comes from.
Rukutana claimed he was trying to defend himself. He claimed that those he had shot comes from a crowd that came to his farm armed earlier.
“Those people were armed. They came to my farm and blocked my family members from leaving home. My guards went and urged them to leave but they refused. I was trying to secure myself,” he said as reported by a Ugandan blog.
The police spokesman Fred Enanga said one of the victims, Dan Rwiburingi, suffered severe head injuries and was rushed to Ntungamo Hospital in critical condition while the rest had minor injuries.
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The minister together with his three bodyguards and was charged with seven offenses, including attempted murder, assault, malicious damage, and threatening violence.
President Yoweri Museveni condemned the shooting incident in a speech he gave on Monday.
“Those who beat people are in jail. Minister Rukutana is in jail with his bodyguards and should be prosecuted. They will be held fully accountable with robust charges including assault and attempted murder,” Museveni said.
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