The High Court in Wakiso is set to determine whether an ordinary resident has the legal right to challenge the election of a Local Council V chairperson, a preliminary question that could determine whether one of two petitions challenging Wakiso District LCV results proceeds to trial.
Justice George Okello on Monday directed lawyers in the case to make submissions on whether Farouq Lule, a resident who did not contest in the January 2026 elections, has the legal standing to challenge the election of Engineer Ian Kyeyune as Wakiso District LCV chairperson.
Kyeyune, the National Resistance Movement candidate, is defending his election against two separate petitions filed by Lule and his closest rival, National Unity Platform candidate Nasifu Najja. The court directed the lawyers to examine Section 150 of the Local Governments Act alongside the Court of Appeal decision in Ronald Ndawula v Hajji Nadduli Abdul, Election Petition Appeal No. 20 of 2006.
The issue arose after the Electoral Commission asked the court to consolidate the two petitions into one case. Electoral Commission lawyer John Musiime told the court that the petitions arise from the same election and seek similar remedies. “I pray that the cases be consolidated since they arise from the same election and seek similar prayers,” Musiime told the court.
However, Kenneth Paul Kakande, who represents both petitioners, opposed the application, arguing that the two petitions are based on different factual grounds. Kakande said Lule’s petition is primarily concerned with the nomination process, including Kyeyune’s academic qualifications and the names under which he was nominated. Najja’s petition, on the other hand, challenges the nomination process as well as the tallying of results, declaration of the winner and alleged obstruction that prevented access to the tally centre.
Justice Okello deferred the question of consolidation and instead directed the lawyers to address the issue of Lule’s standing. Section 150 of the Local Governments Act appears to restrict challenges to the election of an LCV chairperson to an “aggrieved candidate”, while providing registered voters, subject to specified requirements including supporting signatures, a wider avenue to challenge the election of councillors.
The court also considered the 2006 Court of Appeal decision involving Ronald Ndawula and Hajji Abdul Nadduli. Ndawula had been declared unopposed as Luweero District LCV chairperson in 2006 when Nadduli, who was a registered voter but not a competing candidate, petitioned the High Court challenging Ndawula’s academic qualifications.
The High Court initially nullified the election before the Court of Appeal reversed the decision on the qualifications issue. The precedent is now before Justice Okello as he considers whether a non-candidate resident can maintain a petition challenging an LCV chairperson’s election under the current legal framework. After taking the lawyers through the relevant provisions and the Court of Appeal’s reasoning, Justice Okello directed both sides to study the law and the precedent and return to court at 2 p.m. on Tuesday for submissions.
The court will then determine whether Lule has the locus standi to maintain his petition before proceeding with the other issues in the case. Meanwhile, Kakande asked the court to compel the Electoral Commission to release Declaration of Results forms and other election materials, which he said had not been provided despite formal requests. Musiime told the court that the documents had already been uploaded onto the Electronic Court Case Management Information System on September 19, 2026.
Following the clarification, the petitioners asked for time to review the documents and report back to court. Justice Okello also granted the Electoral Commission permission to file supplementary affidavits from two officials, including Tolbert Musingu, who was the returning officer for Wakiso during the election.
Once the question of Lule’s standing is resolved, Justice Okello is expected to rule on whether the two petitions should be consolidated before setting a timetable for further conferencing and scheduling. Kyeyune was declared winner of the Wakiso District LCV chairperson election with 177,710 votes, followed by Najja with 99,235 votes. Democratic Front candidate Flavia Nakafero came third with 10,597 votes. The election was also marked by a confrontation at the tally centre, where Najja was removed by security personnel during protests over the declared results-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
