State Minister Nameere Accuses NUP of Rigging Following Masaka Election Petition Dismissal

State Minister for Local Government Justine Nameere has launched a scathing attack against the National Unity Platform (NUP), accusing the opposition party of collaborating with police and the Electoral Commission to manipulate election outcomes. Nameere made these remarks following the dismissal of an election petition that sought to overturn her victory in the Masaka City Woman MP race.

The legal battle stems from the January 15, 2026 parliamentary elections. Initially, the Electoral Commission announced NUP’s Rose Nalubowa as the winner with 25,443 votes, placing her ahead of Nameere, who secured 20,324 votes. However, Nameere successfully petitioned the Masaka Chief Magistrate’s Court for a vote recount, arguing that several polling stations had been omitted from the initial tally.

Supervised by Chief Magistrate Albert Asiimwe, the recount flipped the results in Nameere’s favor, giving her 25,502 votes compared to Nalubowa’s 23,176. Nalubowa subsequently challenged this outcome at the High Court, citing compromised ballot boxes and the exclusion of 1,353 votes.

Delivering the verdict, Justice Bernard Namanya acknowledged that the recount had suffered procedural breaches due to compromised electoral materials. Nevertheless, the judge ruled that these irregularities did not substantially alter the final outcome. The court noted that even if the excluded votes were credited to Nalubowa, she would still trail Nameere by 973 votes. Consequently, the petition was dismissed with costs.

Reflecting on the verdict, Nameere claimed she was fortunate to survive what she described as a systematic plot to overturn her mandate. She alleged that NUP frequently engages in rigging alongside institutional backing, affecting numerous candidates across different political parties. Despite her fierce political rhetoric, Nameere emphasized that her immediate goal is to foster unity and reconciliation among the residents of Masaka City following the divisive campaigns.

Read more about this development on the Nile Post.