Bushenyi, Uganda: Voters in Igara West Constituency in Bushenyi District have asked the NRM Electoral Commission Tribunal to cancel the declaration of Amanya Cohen Kyampene as the ruling party’s flagbearer and instead award the ticket to his rival, Tugume Boniface, citing overwhelming evidence of rigging, bribery, ballot stuffing, and voter intimidation.
The development comes just days to the landmark ruling by the tribunal on a petition filed by Tugume, the runner-up in the July 17 NRM MP primaries, where he claimed that the electoral process was riddled with illegalities that violated Chapter Two, Clause 6(3) of the NRM Constitution.
Tugume, in his petition filed on July 21, insisted these irregularities substantially affected the final results and denied him a rightful victory. “Our client prays that the results be set aside and a fresh or new election be ordered,” the petition reads in part. “Alternatively, the party should declare Tugume Boniface as the duly elected flagbearer.”
564 Votes Cast in Station with 499 Voters
Tugume’s petition cited gross over-voting at Katimba Polling Station in Rushinya Parish, where Kyampene was allegedly awarded 564 votes, exceeding the 499 registered voters at the station. He argues this was a clear case of voting by unregistered persons.
He further alleged that at Kahija II Polling Station in Nyabubare Sub-county, home to 469 registered voters, voting never took place after Kyampene reportedly incited violence on polling day. No rescheduling was done, and the station was excluded from final tallies.
At Rwakaringura Polling Station, Tugume claims the presiding officer altered results by inflating Kyampene’s tally from 107 to 407 votes on the official declaration form. His agents reportedly declined to sign the forms in protest.
Widespread Bribery and Result Manipulation
He further alleged that Kyampene and his agents bribed voters across Kakanju Sub-county, particularly at five polling stations where returning officers have agreed to testify. Among them are:
- Nyabitekyere (361 voters) – Bribery confirmed by Mr. Bangumya Danson.
- Kyentobo (370 voters) – Confirmed by Mr. Nkundabaabo Unious.
- Ryamizingo (558 voters) – Confirmed by Ms. Nayebare Asiat.
- Nyarwanya A (270 voters) – Confirmed by Ms. Atukunda Racheal.
- Ndaragi (318 voters) – Confirmed by Mr. Kanzira Andrew Kagwa.
This, according to Tugume, gave Kyampene an artificial lead of 5,735 votes, denying voters a credible outcome of the primaries.
Students, Ghost Polling Stations cited
Tugume further accuses Kyampene of using unregistered students from Hope Wings High School, owned by the area GISO, to vote illegally at Ryamizingo Polling Station, while the polling station for Kijumo II was illegally moved from Kijumo Model Primary School to the private home of Canon Bangizi, without legal notice. Kyampene reportedly benefited from this with 147 votes that changed the final outcome.
He also cited incidents of harassment and arrests of his supporters, particularly in Kakanju Sub-county, while results from 10 polling stations representing 2,404 votes were not verified on the second page of the declaration forms, rendering them invalid.
Videos and documents have been submitted as evidence.
Voters Demand Tribunal Action
As the NRM Tribunal prepares to deliver its ruling this Saturday, August 9, residents of Igara West say Kyampene’s declaration should be nullified and the flag given to Tugume, who they argue was the rightful winner before the process was hijacked by violence, bribery, and ballot fraud.
The July 17 Primaries saw Kyampene accumulate 24,097 votes (47.4% of the total) to claim the party flag while his closest rival and challenger, Tugume Bonifance, garnered 18,362 votes (36.1%). Other candidates, Turyamureeba Paul Kahigi received 1,725 votes (3.4%), Asiimire Mackline secured 4,771 votes (9.4%), Ninwesiga Dan obtained a mere 340 votes (0.67%), and Mwine Jacob Kakiyagara collected 1,527 votes (3%). The total number of valid votes cast in the election was 50,822.
If you would like your article/opinion to be published on Uganda’s most authoritative news platform, send your submission on: [email protected]. You can also follow DailyExpress on WhatsApp and on Twitter (X) for realtime updates.
