The High Court in Kampala has nullified the election of Erias Nalukoola Luyimbazi as Member of Parliament for Kawempe Division North and ordered a fresh by-election, following a successful petition by Faridah Nambi Kigongo of the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM).
In a ruling delivered by Justice Bernard Namanya, the court found that the January 2021 election was marred by significant irregularities that substantially affected its outcome.
Chief among these, the judge noted, was the disenfranchisement of 16,640 voters, including the petitioner herself.
“This court has reached the decision to set aside the election of Luyimbazi Elias Nalukoola as a Member of Parliament for Kawempe Division North constituency for two main reasons: i) 16,640 voters in the constituency including Nambi Faridah Kigongo were denied the right to vote (disenfranchised) which affected the result of the election in a substantial manner,” the judgment reads in part.
The court also found that Nalukoola, who ran on the National Unity Platform (NUP) ticket, engaged in illegal campaigning on polling day—a violation of Sections 100(1)(a) and (b), 100(2)(a), and 100(3) of the Parliamentary Elections Act (Cap. 177).
He was found to have personally canvassed for votes at Mbogo Primary School Playground and Kazo Angola LCI Office polling stations during voting hours, conduct which Justice Namanya ruled amounted to an electoral offence.
Justice Namanya subsequently declared the Kawempe North parliamentary seat vacant and directed the Electoral Commission to organize a fresh election.
In his ruling, he ordered that each party bears its own legal costs.
The Electoral Commission is now expected to announce the date for the by-election.
The decision marks a significant development in Uganda’s ongoing efforts to ensure electoral integrity, particularly in urban constituencies where political competition is often fierce. Nalukoola has not yet commented on the ruling.
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