HOIMA, UGANDA: Pastor Denis Kintu, a self-proclaimed man of God and prayer warrior at Empowerment City Church (ECC) in Hoima city has been remanded to prison over assault of his followers.
Early this week, a video of Pastor Kintu went viral on social media as he was filmed flogging individuals identified as ushers at his church for allegedly being incompetent in performing their duties and continued habits of late coming.
In the video, a man holding a lash could be overheard summoning a number of the faithful towards altar, and ordering them to lie down. Then he administered swishing lashes on them one after the other, whipping some more times than the rest.
The adults headed to the punishments in a single file, although some could be seen trying to skip, prompting the man to point at and beckon them forward.
In a part of the video, he is overheard assuring the followers he was caning that he had warned them he was not from Bunyoro, the region where the church is located, a proclamation which in court yesterday attracted charges of “promoting sectarianism” against Mr Kintu.
Mr. Kintu, 42, would later be arrested by police on Wednesday alongside five members of the church and incarcerated and were yesterday taken to court which charged them with 18 counts of common assault and causing bodily harm, assault, promoting sectarianism and human trafficking.
State prosecution allege that on Sunday, August 28, when the assault happened, one victim identified as Kevin Mugisa was flogged for abuse of power of rituals while Doreen Aganyira and James Mugisa were respectively kept for extortion purposes and harmful ritual.
Mr Kintu, however, denied the charges and the Grade One Magistrate Elijah Iradukunda remanded him to Kiryateete government prison on grounds that he lacked jurisdiction over eight of the 18 charges against the accused.
He returns to court next Wednesday, September 07, 2022.
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