A former educator at Edu-Care Junior School in Wakaliga, Kampala, has been ordered to pay a court fine of Shs4.6m or face a year in prison for disseminating hate speech and engaging in cyber-harassment against the school’s head teacher.
The Senior Principal Grade One Magistrate Adam Byaruhanga at Mwanga II sentenced Ayub Mubiru, 37, after finding him guilty of the two offenses of Cyber harassment contrary to section 24(1)(2)(A) of the Penal Code Act and hate speech contrary to section 26(A)(a) of the Computer Misuse Act as Amended 2022.
For the first count of cyber harassment, Mubiru was ordered to pay a fine equivalent to 30 currency points, or Shs600,000, or serve six months in prison. For the second count of hate speech, he was fined 200 currency points, equivalent to Shs4 million, or face one year in prison.
The court ruled that while the fines are to be paid consecutively, the prison sentences would run concurrently. The sentencing aims to reform the convict and deter others from similar behavior.
The court also emphasized the need to send a message to the public about the misuse of social media. The court took into account that Mubiru is the sole provider for his family and that he had a professional relationship with the complainant, as they were both part of the same school. The court believes that the two had a cordial relationship before this incident.
However, the court also stressed that Mubiru needs to learn civility and self-control, as words once spoken cannot be taken back. This warning extends to all who misuse social media, urging them to think before writing, sharing, or posting about someone.
After a ten-month trial, Mubiru, found guilty on both counts, sought to avoid the maximum penalty of ten years in prison or a fine of Shs18m by asking for forgiveness from the court and his former boss.
However, his former boss, Mahad Kayondo, refused to forgive Mubiru, stating that he had been psychologically tormented by the 1,110 messages Mubiru sent him over 37 days.
Kayondo told the court that Mubiru created WhatsApp groups where he would send 30 messages daily, which he would also forward to Kayondo.
Court documents reveal that the messages suggested that Kayondo was making inappropriate advances towards his female staff.
The prosecution’s charge sheet stated that between March 24, 2023, and April 13, 2023, in Nateete Wakaliga Zone in Kampala district, Mubiru willfully and repeatedly used a computer, a mobile phone model BH58, to make suggestions or proposals against Mahad Kayondo.