Mawogola MP's Legal Team Bypasses Handwriting Expert in Election Petition

Legal representatives for Mawogola County legislator Dez Oswaldo Byuuma chose not to cross-examine a handwriting expert during an ongoing court challenge against his January 15 electoral victory.

Former MP Goreth Namugga filed the petition to contest the election results. During the court session presided over by Justice Rosette Comfort Kania, defense lawyers Geoffrey Kandebe and Haruna Ssewaya were expected to question handwriting expert Catherine Namuwooya regarding the authenticity of altered Declaration of Results (DR) forms.

However, Ssewaya explained that the defense opted against the cross-examination because the specific altered DR forms were not attached to Namuwooya’s affidavit on the court record, rendering the exercise pointless.

During the same session, Namugga’s legal team, led by Caleb Alaka, cross-examined one of the respondent’s witnesses. The questioning reportedly revealed discrepancies in registered voters and total votes polled across more than ten polling stations.

Speaking to reporters after the adjournment, Byuuma expressed confidence that the judiciary would uphold his mandate, arguing that the highlighted numerical discrepancies were matters for the Electoral Commission rather than an individual candidate.

Conversely, Namugga maintained that the poll was plagued by widespread irregularities, pointing to numerous DR forms signed exclusively by the MP’s agents despite the presence of representatives from other camps.

Justice Rosette Comfort Kania adjourned the proceedings to October 30 to allow Electoral Commission principal legal officer Enock Kugonza to testify. A date for written submissions and the final judgment will be set once all witnesses have presented their testimonies.

Read the original story on the Daily Monitor.