By Chris Mugasha
Following the arrest and remanding of the embattled woman who slapped a police traffic officer in Kampala, an elder in Bushenyi district has come out to defend and sympathize with the woman.
Mzee William Mukaira an elder has come out to defend Mercy Tibitwire Bashisha saying the public should wait to hear her story before condemning her and passing the judgment against her over her actions.
As a result, Mukaira the former Bushenyi district chairman has criticized Parliament led by the speaker of parliament Annita Among saying she rushed to condemn Bashisha before parliament and the entire nation.
It is alleged that Tibitwire run out of her emotions and slapped a traffic officer Charles Makawa. Later, a viral video circulated across the social media showing Timbitwire assaulting a traffic officer at the Lugogo traffic lights on 18th October 2024. Makawa remained calm but he plucked off Bashisha’s number plate. Makawa’s actions have been described by many including the speaker Among as high sense of maturity to the extent that the speaker has directed that he should be deployed at parliament’s police directorate over his exemplary conduct.
Mukaira says the speaker should not have been the one to applaud the actions of police’s traffic officer without first analyzing the situation of transport in Kampala and the social behaviors in Kampala.
“Considering the situation that people go through in Kampala roads especially in the traffic jam where there are high chances of being robbed, accidents………everyone is candidate of Timbitwire’s actions,” Mukaira argued.
Speaking to the Western Focus Magazine Team at his office in Bushenyi town today, Mukaira said it is unfortunate that Timbitwire has attracted all the criticism/condemnations and that she has not been given the opportunity to tell the public her side of the story.
He demanded that Timbitwire should be given chance to tell the public the crime she had committed which warranted the traffic officer to ‘run’ after her.
Mukaira blamed the traffic officer for even abandoning his duty station to follow Bashiisha.
The elder said it was not necessary for the traffic officer to follow Timbitwire yet her car had registration number plates which the traffic officer should have registered/recorded down and submitted the case to the criminal investigations department for a follow up and further investigations.
“I am still wondering about the crime that Timbitwire had committed which warranted the traffic officer to follow her. I want to know which distance she had moved,” Mukaira said reasoning that, “may be the car was faulty and it could not stop/break and so to avoid more problems, she decided to drive ahead.”
Mukaira said women have been pressed so much and many have developed anger over a number of issues.
Mukaira further described the actions of the traffic officer of removing the number plate from Timbitwire’s car as provoking and out-fashioned.
“He is not the only traffic officer in the whole of Kampala. He should have reported Bashiisha car to the next traffic police station or check point so that they also stop it or impound it,” the elder said.
Mukaira said Timbitwire should not suffer before police where police is the complainant, prosecutor and the statement recorder.
Mukaira challenged government, parliament to address the issue of traffic jam and also install modern systems that control the flow of traffic. “Should we be still having traffic officers running after vehicles which have committed crimes?” he wondered.
Timbitwire was yesterday presented before Nakawa magistrates’ court and she was remanded to till 4th.November. She faces multiple charges including, assault, attempted simple robbery of an EPS machine, failure to comply with police directives, careless driving, and driving with expired insurance. End.
