The Court of Appeal Friday confirmed Joyce Bagala Ntwatwa as the duly elected Mityana Woman Member of Parliament after the Minister for Lands, Judith Nabakooba failed to prove electoral malpractice.
The High Court decision that nullified Bagala’s win on grounds of bribery has been overturned.
Bagala’s victory was being challenged by Nabakooba on grounds of malpractice such as voter and EC official bribery which the latter (incumbent then) says cost her victory.
Nabakooba claimed that several presiding officers in the area connived with Bagala’s agents and altered the Declaration forms on top of bribing voters on voting day. She went ahead and accused Bagala of using security operatives to intimidate her voters.
However, the Court of Appeal ruled that Minister Nabakooba failed to adduce evidence of electoral malpractice.
Bagala, who stood on the National Unity Platform (NUP) ticket, trounced the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate Nabakooba in the elections as she was declared the winner by the Mityana District Returning officer, Stephen Makubuya, with 64,305 votes. The minister who was the incumbent came second with 48,078 votes.
Meanwhile, The appellate court has ordered for a fresh hearing of NUP’s Fred Nyanzi Ssentamu challenging the victory of Muhammad Nsereko as Member of Parliament for Kampala Central Division.
The decision comes after Nyanzi adduced sufficient evidence before the appellate court proving that Nsereko made it hard to be served with the said election petition as the law required.
About The Author
