A petition challenging the election of Rakai Woman Member of Parliament Juliet Suubi Kinyamatama has resumed after the case file, which had gone missing from the Masaka High Court registry, was recovered.
The petitioner, former parliamentary candidate Grace Nalubega, had appeared before Masaka High Court Judge Bernard Namanya for the hearing of her petition when she was informed that the file could not be traced at the court registry.
She was subsequently advised to follow up the matter through the Chief Registrar.
Nalubega, through her lawyer Jude Mbabaali, later approached the Deputy Registrar of Masaka High Court, Roy Karungi, who advised them to file a fresh petition.
Mbabaali told court that the advice came as a shock because filing a new petition at that stage could have raised questions about whether the case had been filed within the legally prescribed period.
He said they instead asked the Deputy Registrar to make every effort to trace the original petition file.
According to Mbabaali, the lawyers were relieved when they returned to court for the mention of the matter and discovered that the missing file had been recovered.
However, he said court officials did not provide them with a clear explanation of where the file had been found or how it had disappeared from the registry.
The lawyers have also filed an application seeking permission to introduce additional evidence relating to the names allegedly used by Kinyamatama in previous elections.
Mbabaali told court that Kinyamatama had previously used different versions of her name, including Juliet Suubi Kinyamatama, Juliet Kobusingye and Juliet Suubi Kinyamatama K.
He argued that the issue was relevant to the petition and should therefore be considered by the court.
Judge Namanya adjourned the matter to September 22, when he is expected to deliver a ruling on the application. The ruling will be communicated to the parties by email.
Meanwhile, Nalubega expressed concern over the disappearance of the court file, saying she suspected that it could have been an attempt to interfere with the judicial proceedings.
She urged the court to ensure that the matter is handled fairly, saying she was relying on the judicial process to resolve the electoral dispute.
In the 2026 General Election, Kinyamatama, who contested on the National Resistance Movement (NRM) ticket, was declared the winner with 41,684 votes.
Nalubega, who contested on the National Unity Platform (NUP) ticket, came second with 29,039 votes, while independent candidate Asha Lubyayi finished third with 17,291 votes.
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