Court Questions Mufumbiro’s Election Petition Over Unchallenged Agent Signatures

The High Court has cast doubt on allegations of result tampering raised by National Unity Platform (NUP) deputy spokesperson Waiswa Mufumbiro in his petition challenging the election of Fredric Ruhindi as the Nakawa East Member of Parliament.

Justice Allan Nshimye observed that several polling agents representing Mufumbiro signed the disputed declaration of results forms, yet only two of them were eventually called to testify in support of the legal challenge. The court reviewed documents marked J1 to J12, which featured the signatures of Mufumbiro’s agents at various polling stations.

Among the identified agents were Wanyenze for form J1, Seka for J2, Namukeba Geba for J3, Moses for J4, Birundi for J5, Mugulabo Moses for J6, Kaseje Benjamin for J7, and Nangire Emmanuel for J8. The judge noted that the remaining agents failed to provide affidavits explaining whether they witnessed any irregularities during the voting process.

Justice Nshimye stated that the absence of testimony from these on-the-ground agents significantly weakened the petitioner’s claims. When examining specific documents, such as the form from Kasasiro OMUZ polling station signed by agent Wanyenze, the judge found no evidence of alterations. The combined total of votes for the candidates matched the presiding officer’s figure of valid votes cast, aligning with Section 66 of the Parliamentary Elections Act.

A similar review of the St Stephen Hassan’s School polling station form revealed no visible crossings or alterations. Consequently, the court ruled that the numerical evidence and the verified signatures did not support the allegations of electoral malpractice. Read more details of the ruling on Nile Post.