NYARUGENGE - The Supreme Court will today pronounce itself on the legality of the summonses issued to the board members of the Bank of Commerce, Development and Industry (BCDI).

The summonses were issued by the Nyarugenge Higher Instance Court against the will of the prosecution.

The petition seeking constitutional interpretation was filed by one of the nine board members, Alfred Mutebwa.

"But the decision will apply to all,” Mutebwa’s lawyer, Serge Kayitare, said after the hearing in late November.

Mutebwa, together with eight other former board members of the now insolvent BCDI, were summoned on request of Alfred Kalisa, the jailed former CEO of the bank.

Kalisa alleges that the board members are equally accountable for the mismanagement of the bank.

The constitutional interpretation was sought on grounds that the decision by magistrate Chantal Werabe, who initially handled the case, was taken against the will of prosecution. She was later disqualified from the case upon request by the board members.

"Article 121 of the criminal procedure that was invoked by the judge to issue the summonses should be overruled by article 160 of the constitution which empowers prosecution to conduct investigation on anyone accused because in this case the judge did not conduct investigations prior to issuing the summonses,” Kayitare, had told the nine-man quorum of the Supreme Court.

The quorum was presided over by Supreme Court vice-president Prof. Sam Rugege.

Apart from Mutebwa, other board members include Egide Gatera, John Nkera, John Bosco Rusagara and Deo Bamurase.

Others are Manasseh Simba and Callixte Kajangwe.
Arrested late 2006, Kalisa is accused of six counts that include breach of trust, nepotism and favouritism, which according to prosecution led to losses of the back that is said to be in hundreds of millions of Francs.

BCDI has since been bought by Ecobank, a West African banking consortium.

After the verdict, the trial will resume in substance at the Nyarugenge Higher Instance Court.

Ends