Wakilii

Waliggo Aisha Nuluyati v Sekindi Aisha and Another (Election Petition No. 4 of 2016)

High Court · [2016] UGHC 27 · 2016 Petition Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Election petition challenging the validity of nomination and election of the first respondent as Woman MP for Kalungu District following parliamentary elections held on 18 February 2016
Decision
Election petition dismissed with costs to the respondents

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

Held that the petitioner failed to discharge the burden of proving that the first respondent lacked the requisite academic qualifications or that her certificate of equivalence was invalid. The court found that the National Council for Higher Education properly consulted the Uganda National Examinations Board in 2015 before issuing the certificate. Allegations of bribery were not proved to the required standard where evidence was contradictory, witnesses lacked credibility, and affidavits were fatally defective. Procedural irregularities affecting 35 votes did not affect the result in a substantial manner where the winning margin was over 3000 votes. Election petition dismissed with costs to the respondents.

Outcome

Election petition dismissed with costs to the respondents

Facts

The petitioner and first respondent contested the Woman MP seat for Kalungu District in elections held on 18 February 2016. The Electoral Commission declared the first respondent winner with 19,884 votes against the petitioner's 16,819 votes. The petitioner challenged the election on grounds that the first respondent lacked requisite academic qualifications, specifically that she presented false certificates and did not obtain a valid certificate of equivalence from NCHE. The petitioner also alleged bribery, including distribution of goats and cash at a football match on 25 December 2015, and distribution of basins at Bulingo Trading Centre. The petitioner further alleged that the Electoral Commission failed to conduct the election in accordance with electoral laws and that there were discrepancies in vote counts at several polling stations totalling 35 excess votes.

Issues

  1. Whether the 1st respondent at the time of nomination and election was possessed of the requisite academic qualifications for election as woman MP for Kalungu District.
  2. Whether at the time of her nomination the 1st respondent was possessed of a valid certificate of equivalence from the NCHE and whether her academic documents were equated according to the law.
  3. Whether the 1st respondent personally or through her agents, with her knowledge and consent, committed any electoral offences or malpractices during the election period.
  4. Whether the said election was conducted in accordance with principles laid out in the Constitution, the Parliamentary Elections Act (PEA) and the Electoral Commission Act.
  5. Whether any non-compliance affected the results in a substantial manner.
  6. What remedies are available.

Orders

  • Election petition dismissed.
  • Costs awarded to the respondents.

Rules and key headnotes

Electoral Law — Academic Qualifications — Certificate of Equivalence — Consultation with UNEB
A certificate of equivalence issued by the National Council for Higher Education under Parliamentary Elections Act s.4(6) is valid where UNEB has been consulted and has participated in the verification process, and the consultation requirement is satisfied by exchange of correspondence demonstrating actual participation by UNEB in confirming the authenticity and equivalence of academic qualifications, even where no formal committee minutes exist.
Electoral Law — Academic Qualifications — Name Discrepancies — Identity
Discrepancies in names used by a candidate at different educational institutions do not disqualify the candidate where the candidate has sworn a statutory declaration explaining the discrepancies and the petitioner fails to produce evidence showing that the names belong to different persons, as the burden of proving that another person exists rests on the petitioner.
Electoral Law — Election Petitions — Burden and Standard of Proof — Bribery
Allegations of bribery in an election petition require cogent evidence and must be proved on a balance of probabilities slightly higher than in ordinary civil suits, to a standard that leaves the court without reasonable doubt, and in determining such allegations the court must subject each allegation to thorough scrutiny recognizing that partisan witnesses may resort to lies and exaggeration to secure judicial victory for their preferred candidate.
Evidence — Affidavit Evidence — Defective Affidavits — Oath Not Administered
An affidavit is rendered a nullity and must be disregarded where the deponent did not take an oath before swearing it or where it was not read back to the deponent, and where the affidavit indicates one commissioner for oaths but testimony reveals it was administered by a different person, making the jurat or attestation fundamentally defective under the Oaths Act s.6.
Electoral Law — Election Petitions — Non-Compliance — Substantial Effect on Results
An election will not be set aside for non-compliance with electoral laws or irregularities in vote counting unless the court is satisfied that the non-compliance affected the results in a substantial manner, and isolated errors affecting a small number of votes where the winning margin is large do not constitute substantial effect that warrants annulment of the election.

Legislation cited (10)

Cases cited (11)

  • Col. Kiiza Besigye v Yoweri Kaguta Museveni (Election Petition Appeal No. 1 of 2001)
  • Paul Mwiru v Igeme Nabeta (Election Petition Appeal No. 2 of 2011)
  • Ongole James Michael v Electoral Commission and Another (Election Petition No. 8 of 2006)
  • Interfreight Forwarders Ltd v EADB (SCCA No. 33 of 1992)
  • Mukundane Vincent v Melchiadis Kazwengye and Another (HC 17 of 2011)
  • Abdul Balingira Nakendo v Patrick Mwondha (Election Petition Appeal No. 9 of 2007)
  • Kakooza JB v Electoral Commission and Another (Election Petition Appeal No. 11 of 2007)
  • Amama Mbabazi and Another v Musinguzi Garuga (Election Petition Appeal No. 12 of 2002)
  • Mbayo Jacob Robert v Electoral Commission and Talansya Sinani (Election Petition Appeal No. 7 of 2006)
  • Rtd. Col. Dr. Kiiza Besigye v Electoral Commission and Museveni (Presidential Election Petition No. 1 of 2006)
  • Gunn v Sharpe [1974] 1 QB 808

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Waliggo Aisha Nuluyati v Sekindi Aisha and Another (Election Petition No. 4 of 2016) [2016] UGHC 27 (27 June 2016)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.