Jinja court allows EC to defend Butembe election petition
The Electoral Commission declared and gazetted Kiirya as the winner on March 2, 2026.
Jinja court allows EC to defend Butembe election petition
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The High Court in Jinja has allowed the Electoral Commission to defend a petition challenging the election of Butembe County MP Grace Wanzala Kiirya, after extending the time within which the Commission filed its Answer.
Justice Vincent Wagoma ruled that although the Commission filed its Answer on April 9, 2026, two days after the prescribed deadline, the delay could be regularised under Rule 19 of the Parliamentary Elections (Interim Provisions) (Election Petitions) Rules.
The ruling arose from a preliminary objection filed by petitioner Jacob Kabondo, who challenged the competence of Answers filed by Kiirya and the Electoral Commission.
Kabondo argued that the Answers had been filed outside the mandatory 10-day period under Rule 8(1) and should be struck out, leaving the petition undefended.
The petition concerns the directly elected parliamentary seat for Butembe County, Jinja District, contested in the January 15, 2026 general elections.
The Electoral Commission declared and gazetted Kiirya as the winner on March 2, 2026.
Kabondo filed the petition on March 24 and served Kiirya on March 25 and the Electoral Commission on March 26.
In his ruling dated September 22, Justice Wagoma found that Kiirya’s Answer had been filed within time.
The judge said the 10-day period for Kiirya started running on March 26, following service on March 25, and would ordinarily have expired on April 4.
However, April 4 was a Saturday, followed by Easter Sunday on April 5 and Easter Monday on April 6. The deadline was therefore carried forward to Tuesday, April 7, when court offices reopened.
Kiirya’s Answer was consequently filed within the prescribed period.
The judge found that the Electoral Commission’s deadline was different because its 10-day period started on March 27 and ordinarily expired on April 5, which was Easter Sunday.
The deadline was therefore extended to April 7. Since the commission filed its Answer on April 9, Justice Wagoma found that it was filed two days late.
The judge, however, exercised his powers under Rule 19 to enlarge the filing period by two days and regularise the commission’s Answer.
He clarified that the public holidays did not themselves extend the commission’s deadline beyond April 7. The additional two days were granted separately under Rule 19.
The judge also rejected Kabondo’s argument that the court had no power to extend the statutory filing period.
He relied on the Supreme Court decision in Sitenda Sebalu Verses Sam K. Njuba and Another, which recognised Rule 19 as giving the court power to enlarge time.
Justice Wagoma also considered objections raised by Kiirya concerning some of Kabondo’s affidavits, including alleged defects in certificates of translation, hearsay, alterations to jurats and inconsistencies in signatures.
The judge said those matters would be framed as issues and determined together with the petition on its merits.
He consequently overruled the objection against Kiirya’s Answer and regularised the Electoral Commission’s Answer after extending the filing period by two days.
Justice Wagoma directed that both Answers be considered during the hearing of the petition.
The court directed that the petition proceed to hearing on its merits and ordered each party to bear its own costs of the preliminary objection.