Elizabeth Pacuryema, mayor’s wife, said they are feeling the emotional and financial impact of the detention on their family. She appealed for forgiveness and reconciliation, urging those who oppose her husband to end the ongoing conflict and restore peace in the community.
The family and a Democratic Party (DP) delegation, led by Vice National Chairperson Simon Opoka, faced challenges on Monday while attempting to visit the detained Pader Town Council Mayor, Fearless Kilama Wod-Acholi, at Pader Government Prison in Kineni.
The visit aimed to gather critical facts ahead of Kilama’s appeal hearing, scheduled for January 30, 2025, at Kitgum High Court. He seeks to overturn his conviction on charges of incitement to violence and unlawful assembly. However, prison authorities, led by Donato Owor, the Prison Officer in Charge, imposed several restrictions on the delegation, limiting their access to the mayor.
The prison authorities
blocked some members of the delegation from entering the prison. Only three
members were permitted to meet with the mayor. All their communication devices,
including mobile phones, were confiscated before entering. This raised concerns
about the transparency of the process, with the DP delegation describing the
restrictions as a further attempt to block access to justice.
Mayor Wod-Acholi was
arrested in 2021 along with 32 others during the enforcement of COVID-19
guidelines on charges of incitement to violence, unlawful assembly, and
malicious damage. Although he denied the charges, he was convicted on two
counts; unlawful assembly and incitement to violence. The mayor later appealed the
verdict. Opoka while
addressing the members of the press after the visit, raised concerns about the Mayor’s
January 16, 2025 arrest.
According to the mayor, he was apprehended violently
by four armed men in civilian clothing as he was entering the Kitgum High Court
premises before his appeal hearing. The men, who were driving a silver car with
the number plate UBF 332 Y, forcefully detained him. Wod-Acholi claimed that
the men, who were with a local district leader, refused to identify themselves after
he was denied access to police leadership at Pader Central Police Station
before he was transferred to court premises.
The DP delegation condemned this
as a violation of the mayor's rights and an abuse of power by security forces. The delegation also
criticized the conditions at Kineni Prison. They cited several instances of
inmate mistreatment, including the death of a cancer patient who was allegedly
denied proper medical care.
Mayor Wod-Acholi expressed concerns about receiving
similar unfair treatment and referred to the death of another detainee while on
remand as further evidence of the prison's harsh conditions. Elizabeth Pacuryema, the mayor’s
wife, said they are feeling the emotional and financial impact of the detention
on their family. She appealed for forgiveness and reconciliation, urging those
who oppose her husband to end the ongoing conflict and restore peace in the
community.
//Cue in; “Tye ni
Wod-Acholi matye…
Cue out; …lega ne enu
kiken.”//
Opoka fumed at the
government’s blanket pardon for individuals involved in COVID-19-related
offenses. He questioned why Mayor Wod-Acholi had not benefited from this pardon
that the president declared for such cases. He vowed the DP would continue to
push for justice and accountability, warning against the misuse of the
judiciary and security forces for political purposes.