Former Police Spokesperson Twiine Remanded Again on Hate Speech Charges

Detective Assistant Superintendent of Police (D/ASP) Charles Mansio Twiine, formerly the spokesperson for the Police’s Criminal Investigations Directorate, and his co-accused, Mitala Noah, alias Noah Mutwe, a butcher and member of the National Unity Platform (NUP), have been further remanded to Luzira Prison. The duo faces eight counts, including incitement to violence, spreading malicious information, hate speech, and conspiracy to commit a felony.

Chief Magistrate Ronald Kayizzi presided over the hearing on Thursday, where Chief State Attorney Richard Birivumbuka informed the court that investigations into the matter are ongoing.

Through their legal representatives, D/ASP Twiine and Mitala applied for bail, asserting that the charges against them are bailable by the Magistrates Court.

Twiine presented four sureties: Alex Atuhaire, a lecturer at Victoria University; his wife, Ketty Kabagenyi, a secondary school teacher at Namagunga; James Mugisha, a commissioner at the Equal Opportunities Commission; and Basimwa, his brother and director of Baguma Restaurant in Mbarara. Mitala’s sureties included his father, Henry Kabuye, along with relatives Esther Harriet Namala and Juliet Namusoke.

State Attorney Birivumbuka acknowledged the electronic filing of Twiine’s bail application on June 2nd, noting that June 3rd was a public holiday. However, he argued against a quick adjournment, emphasising that a bail application requires factual rebuttal by the prosecution.

Birivumbuka requested at least two weeks to verify information, citing upcoming public holidays and a weekend which would close public offices. He specifically mentioned the need to verify Mitala’s claim of being in the pork business and to scrutinise the documents submitted by all sureties.

Consequently, Chief Magistrate Kayizzi remanded both D/ASP Twiine and Mitala until June 17, 2025, to allow the prosecution sufficient time to file a formal response to the bail applications.

The prosecution alleges that between January 2024 and May 2025, at various locations within Kampala, D/ASP Twiine incited Mitala Noah via social media to attack and kill the President of Uganda and his son, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, due to their political positions.

Furthermore, Twiine is accused of using a computer to share malicious information, including claims that the Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Anita Annet Among is “a rotten human being and the chief sponsor of the killings and violence in Bukedea District,” statements said to incite hostility against her. He is also alleged to have referred to the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Thomas Tayebwa, as “a money launderer, a masquerader, and a fraudster,” language believed to ridicule and demean him.

The detective faces additional accusations of describing General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the Chief of Defence Forces, as “a fat pig and a crook,” and General James Birungi as “a crook and a killer.” Both remarks are considered derogatory and aimed at inciting public contempt. Moreover, Twiine is accused of claiming that “Bahima are killers,” a statement likely to promote hostility against the Bahima ethnic group.

Both Twiine and Mitala deny all charges, maintaining their innocence. Their case is being heard in the same court where other individuals, such as Ibrahim Musana (Pressure 24 Seven) and Herbert Anderson Burora, the former Rubaga Deputy Resident City Commissioner, face similar charges of hate speech and spreading malicious information, particularly targeting Speaker Anita Among. To date, no evidence has been presented against these individuals despite their arrests and arraignment.