We trust court to annul 2021 election – ANT

Kampala, Uganda |  THE INDEPENDENT | Although the Alliance for National Transformation-ANT party has not petitioned court to dispute results of the 2021 presidential election, its officials say that they are in support of a step taken by the National Unity Platform -NUP to challenge the same.

Describing the recently concluded Presidential election as a military operation to keep the incumbent President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, the ANT National Coordinator Winnie Kiiza says that they still trust court to hear the merits of the case and either annul the election or declare the rightful elected President.

She together with other ANT party leaders addressed journalists today at their offices along Buganda Road in Kampala where they expressed support for any legal means taken by friendly opposition forces in challenging the 2021 general election.

Article 104 of the Constitution allows a presidential candidate up to 15 days after the declaration of results to file a petition in the Supreme Court.  

On 16th January, the Electoral Commission- EC declared Yoweri Museveni the winner of the election, and on January 28th, 2021, released the final tally of the results showing that the incumbent 6,042,898 votes representing 58.38 percent while Kyagulanyi got 3,631,437 votes representing 35.08 percent.

Now, NUP Presidential candidate Robert Kyagulanyi’s lawyers led by Busiro East Mp Medard Lubega Sseggona and Anthony Wameli filed a petition at the Supreme Court challenging the presidential election results.

Kiiza says that her party is bound by documents they signed as Opposition Political Parties to work together during and after the election to secure victory and that they are they in support of the election petition by NUP contesting the presidential election results.

She notes that they believe that court will hear the merits of the case, act independently and deliver justice.

Wilberforce Seryazi, the ANT Spokesperson expressed dissatisfaction with the general conduct, management and voting process.

“We have received complaints where individuals were assisted by security agencies to carry out ballot stuffing. This certainly cannot be an election conducted according to the electoral laws of Uganda. We therefore condemn and reject the outcome of this election,” said Seryazi.

He also noted that during the campaign period, there was great interference from security operatives on the campaign programs of the opposition presidential candidates and that these participated in the cancellation of their radio programs and giving the party venues at the periphery of towns.

MP Gerald Karuhanga, one of the ANT candidates who lost his seat in Ntungamo Municipality said that the electoral process was marred with voter bribery and dominated by the army which he alleged took over polling stations and ensured voting was in favor of the incumbent president.

Meanwhile, the party has demanded that government ceases harassment, ‘preventive arrests’ of opposition members in the country and demanded the immediate release of all people who were arbitrary arrested during the electoral process.

‘We demand that the government disciplines and prosecutes all erratic security officials who killed, injured, harassed, tormented citizens of this country and we demand that Ugandans who were killed, persecuted, injured be expeditiously compensated,” said Seryazi.

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