Innocent Natukunda on Monday withdrew an election petition challenging the election of Lawrence Akugizibwe as the Mwenge North County Member of Parliament in Kyenjojo District.
Natukunda, who contested the January 2026 election as a National Unity Platform (NUP) candidate, was granted leave by the High Court in Fort Portal to withdraw the petition.
Justice Joanita Gertrude Bushara also ordered each party to bear its own legal costs after considering a consent agreement reached by the parties.
Natukunda had challenged the election results, alleging voter bribery, ballot stuffing and manipulation of results. He asked the court to overturn the outcome and order a by-election.
He had listed Akugizibwe, the Kyenjojo District Returning Officer and the Electoral Commission as respondents.
Speaking after the court session, Natukunda said the petition contained more than 1,000 pages of documents, making it difficult to pursue within the time available for hearing election petitions.
“We had filed a petition of over 1,000 pages, and it is hard for us to be convinced that the judge can listen to this case within two months and give us justice,” Natukunda said.
He also said the court had directed him to obtain certified copies of documents from the Electoral Commission, for which he claimed he had been quoted more than 50 million shillings.
Natukunda estimated that legal fees, transport and other expenses would push the total cost of pursuing the case beyond 100 million shillings.
He added that the financial burden and concerns about the hearing process had influenced his decision to agree to the withdrawal.
Natukunda maintained that the election was neither free nor fair, alleging that ballot stuffing and collusion between Electoral Commission officials and Akugizibwe affected the results.
He said the Electoral Commission declared him the winner of 7,913 votes, but he believed he would have secured more votes had the election been conducted fairly.
Natukunda said he would return to the ground to reorganise his supporters and develop strategies to address electoral irregularities in future elections.
Meanwhile, Akugizibwe, who garnered more than 30,000 votes, welcomed the withdrawal, describing it as a victory that affirmed the voters’ choice.
Akugizibwe said the petition had delayed his efforts to deliver services to residents of Mwenge North, but he would now concentrate on fulfilling his campaign promises.
Akugizibwe’s lawyers, led by James Byamukama, had initially asked the court to order Natukunda to pay their legal costs, arguing that they had spent time and resources preparing for the hearing.
However, the parties later agreed that each side would meet its own costs.
English 