Court dismisses amended election petition against Kira MP Musisi

The High Court in Wakiso has dealt a blow to an election challenge against Kira Municipality Member of Parliament, George Musisi, by striking out an amended petition. The ruling by Justice George Okello established a significant legal precedent: parliamentary election petitions cannot be amended under current law.

Justice Okello determined that the amended petition, filed by National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate Daniel Kananura on April 7, 2026, was legally flawed. The primary reason for its dismissal was that it was lodged beyond the mandatory 30-day window following the declaration of election results. This adherence to strict timelines is crucial in election petitions.

The court’s decision followed preliminary applications by both MP Musisi and the Electoral Commission (EC), which were later combined due to their overlapping legal questions. Kananura had sought to challenge Musisi’s victory in the January 15, 2026 election, where Musisi secured 21,561 votes against Kananura’s 6,927. The EC declared the results on January 16 and gazetted them on March 2.

Kananura’s legal team argued that the amendments were intended to clarify existing complaints and did not introduce new causes of action. However, Musisi’s lawyers countered that the amended petition was filed late and introduced new substantive grounds, rendering it inadmissible. The EC supported this stance, emphasizing the statutory time limits.

Justice Okello cited several Supreme Court decisions to reinforce the principle that parliamentary election petitions are not amendable. He rejected arguments that the amendments were merely clarifying and would cause no prejudice, emphasizing that the law provides no avenue for such amendments. While the amended petition has been dismissed, the original petition remains for further consideration by the court, which will now set a date for its substantive hearing.