The hearing of an election petition challenging Mukono Municipality MP Betty Nambooze’s victory was briefly disrupted at the High Court in Mukono on Tuesday after relatives of two men expected to testify confronted security personnel over the men’s presence in court. The relatives, who said Joseph Yiga and Fred Ssebata had gone missing on Sunday, claimed they found the two men inside a white Toyota Alphard, registration number UA 834 EH, reportedly belonging to the petitioner, Daisy Sarah Sonko Nabatanzi.
The discovery sparked a commotion as relatives demanded an explanation and tried to pull them out of the vehicle. Police intervened to restore order before taking the two men and some of their relatives to Mukono Central Police Station. The circumstances surrounding their reported disappearance, their movements between different locations and their presence in the vehicle had not been independently established by press time.
The incident unfolded as Justice Godfrey Himbaza presided over the election petition filed by Nabatanzi, a National Resistance Movement (NRM) member, challenging Nambooze’s victory in the 2026 parliamentary elections. Vincent Ngonge, Ssebata’s father, and Juma Magumba, a relative of the two men, said their family members had allegedly been picked up by a drone vehicle on Sunday and taken to an unknown destination.
They said the disappearance was reported to police under SD reference number 23/20/10/2026. According to the relatives, they later traced the men to Jinja Road Police Station before learning that they had allegedly been transferred to Mpoma Barracks. The family said they subsequently discovered the two men inside the Toyota Alphard at the High Court premises on Tuesday, prompting them to demand answers about how they had ended up in the vehicle.
Their attempt to remove the men led to a confrontation with security personnel, disrupting the proceedings. Police subsequently took the two men and some of their relatives to Mukono Central Police Station. The family’s claims of abduction had not been independently verified, and it was unclear whether police had established how the men moved between the locations mentioned by their relatives.
The incident has added another dimension to the legal battle between the two rival camps. Yiga and Ssebata were reportedly among six witnesses initially lined up to testify for Nabatanzi. They were later said to have sworn fresh affidavits in support of Nambooze, raising questions about the circumstances surrounding the preparation of the affidavits and the witnesses’ intended testimony.
The disagreement over the witnesses has become a point of contention between the legal teams, with the parties expected to address the issues through court proceedings. Aaron Buyinza, one of the lawyers representing Nabatanzi, disputed aspects of the developments surrounding the witnesses and questioned Nambooze’s actions. Buyinza suggested that the incumbent MP had reasons for approaching people initially expected to testify for the petitioner, raising questions about what Nambooze wanted to conceal.
However, the lawyer’s allegations about Nambooze’s motives had not been established by the court, and no judicial finding had linked either party to the men’s reported disappearance. The circumstances under which the two men allegedly changed their positions, as well as the validity and implications of their affidavits, remain matters for the court to consider. Nambooze’s legal team included Ssegona, Erias Nalukoola and Daphine Ahebwa, while Nabatanzi was represented by lawyers including Ahmed Mukasa and Malik Kiberu.
The hearing was marked by tense exchanges as the rival legal teams addressed issues relating to the election petition and the handling of witnesses. During cross-examination, Ssegona pressed Nabatanzi on matters relating to her challenge to Nambooze’s election victory. Buyinza later explained that Nabatanzi’s petition was not necessarily based on a claim that she had personally obtained more votes than Nambooze-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
