High court to conduct fresh tally of Kayunga woman NRM primary election results today

Mukono, Uganda |  THE INDEPENDENT |   Mukono High court is expected to conduct a fresh tally of the results from the National Resistance Movement-NRM party primaries for Kayunga District Woman Member of Parliament. 

The exercise couldn’t take place on Monday as set by Justice David Batema because the official sent by party leadership failed to present declaration forms for the disputed primary elections as directed by the court last week.  

Justice Batema issued the orders after ruling in favour of an application filed by Jackline Birungi Kobusingye, one of the candidates in the primaries challenging the declaration of her rival Agatha Nalubwama as the winner of the polls. Kobusingye petitioned court accusing Nalubwama and the NRM party officials of mishandling the vote tallying and general voting process.  

She also said that the NRM Disputes Tribunal had ignored her pleas for justice on the grounds that she had failed to present any evidence backing her claims that minors and opposition members were allowed to vote in the party primaries. Kobusingye also accused the polling officials of doctoring some result declaration forms, which played in favour of her rival. Kobusingye polled 33, 632 votes against 38, 562 votes garnered by Nalubwama.

In his ruling, Justice Batema, says the party tribunal didn’t cause list Kobusingye’s petition for hearing before he allowed the application for judicial review and quashed the poll results. He ordered for a fresh tally in the presence of the High Court Registrar, Mukono District NRM Registrar or any other person nominated by the party Electoral commission to determine the authenticity and the correctness of the DR forms signed during the election process, which was expected to take place on Monday.

On Tuesday, Nalubwama’s lawyer Albert Mukasa who also represented NRM filed an application for an injunction to stop the fresh tally and maintain the decision of the tribunal, which declared her client as the winner of the polls. The application will also come up for hearing later today. 

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