Courts in Uganda and Ghana issue prison sentences for child defilement

In Uganda, the Court of Appeal has upheld an 18-year prison sentence for Robert Kigere, who was convicted of the aggravated defilement of a nine-year-old girl in Mukono District. Kigere had appealed the sentence, claiming it was harsh and failed to consider mitigation factors. However, a panel of three justices ruled that the original sentence was not manifestly excessive, noting that the statutory maximum for such an offense is death and that the trial court had actually been lenient by considering Kigere's guilty plea and status as a first-time offender.

In Ghana, the Wa High Court sentenced 29-year-old Mashood Naah to 14 years of imprisonment with hard labour for defiling a three-year-old girl. Naah, a tricycle rider, was found guilty after a full trial following allegations that the child was assaulted by the man she knew as “Uncle Mashood.” The court noted that Naah had breached the trust placed in him as a person responsible for transporting the child to and from school, stating the sentence should serve as a deterrent.