By KT Reporter
Masaka Chief Magistrate’s Court has dismissed an application seeking a vote recount in the Bukomansimbi District Woman Member of Parliament race conducted on January 15.
The application was filed by the incumbent Bukomansimbi District Woman MP, Veronica Nanyondo of the National Unity Platform (NUP), challenging the declaration of Ruth Katushabe of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) as the winner of the polls.
According to the declaration of results form signed by the Bukomansimbi District Returning Officer, Betty Komugyereko, Katushabe was declared the winner after garnering 23,481 votes, narrowly defeating Nanyondo, who obtained 23,275 votes.
However, in an application filed through her lawyer, John Chrysostom Katumba, Nanyondo argued that Katushabe’s victory was based on falsified results that were allegedly fictitiously entered into the final tally sheet.
She contended that during the tallying process, the Returning Officer inflated results from seven polling stations in favour of the NRM candidate, thereby unlawfully denying her victory.
Nanyondo further told the court that the declaration of the winner was made under duress, alleging that security personnel, both military and police, cordoned off the tally centre and forcefully ejected her polling agents.
Nanyondo asked the court to order a re-examination of the declaration of results forms from the seven disputed polling stations, which she claimed had been altered during the tallying process. But Ruth Katushabe, through her lawyer Geoffrey Kandeebe, denied all the allegations, arguing that the application was founded on claims that were not supported by verifiable evidence.
Kandeebe submitted that Nanyondo failed to present certified copies of the declaration of results forms or the transmission of results sheets, instead inviting the court to rely on what he described as non-credible and unverified evidence. “The court cannot believe the results as presented by the applicant because she did not conduct the election or the tallying process,” Kandeebe argued.
In his ruling, the Masaka Chief Magistrate, Abert Asiimwe, held that based on the evidence before the court, the application did not warrant the granting of a recount. He ruled that the nature of the dispute required substantive adjudication by the High Court and advised Nanyondo to challenge the election through an election petition.
The Magistrate further advised that the Returning Officer be added as a respondent, noting that she had been repeatedly accused of conniving in the alleged irregularities. Following the ruling, Veronica Nanyondo said she would not relent in her pursuit of what she described as her rightful victory.
She revealed that she has instructed her legal team to file an election petition in the High Court, expressing optimism that the results would eventually be overturned.
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