Bwowe’s Nakawa West petition dismissed as audacious ‘attempt to sneak to parliament’

Kampala, Uganda: The High Court has dismissed a pre-election petition by Ivan Bwowe seeking to block the nomination of seven rival candidates in Nakawa Division West, with the judge ruling that the case was an “audacious attempt to sneak to Parliament” without securing a popular mandate.

“The effort of the appellant through this petition is an audacious attempt to SNEAK to Parliament to represent a group of people whose mandate he has not obtained,” High Court Judge, Justice Collins Acellam held.

In his strongly worded decision, the Judge also upheld the actions of the Electoral Commission, rejecting Bwowe’s argument that his competitors were nominated for a non-existent constituency called “Nakawa West” rather than “Nakawa Division West.”

“I agree with counsel for the respondents that the ‘Nakawa West’ Constituency and ‘Nakawa Division West Constituency’ are one and the same but often used interchangeably.”

In his flopped petition, Bwowe, a former Makerere University Guild President and People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) candidate, had asked court to nullify the nomination of seven candidates; Happy Nasasira, Herbert Anderson Burora, Felix Ephraim Okuye, Vincent Norbert Okumu, Joel Besekezi Ssenyonyi, Wilberforce Kyambadde and Apuuli Rwamiti, and instead declare him the sole validly nominated candidate, effectively handing him the parliamentary seat unopposed.

But the judge rejected that request, warning that granting the petition would amount to disenfranchising voters. “To allow the appeal, this court will be denying the voters of Nakawa Division West Constituency the opportunity of choosing their representative to Parliament,” Acellam ruled. “A proper mandate is through the ballot box.”

Clerical error lawfully corrected

Justice Acellam agreed with the Electoral Commission that the omission of the word “Division” was a minor clerical error that was cured during the nomination process and did not invalidate the exercise.

“I agree that the failure by the 2nd–8th respondents to fill in the correct name of the constituency is a minor irregularity or misnomer which could be cured by the Commission under the powers conferred upon it by law,” the judge said.

The court noted that all candidates, including Bwowe, signed control forms clearly bearing the correct constituency name, Nakawa Division West, and that campaign programmes submitted to the Commission reflected the same electoral area.

“The control form of the parties and all preceding documents in respect to the nomination indicate the constituency as Nakawa Division West,” Acellam ruled, adding that the correction caused no confusion to voters or candidates.

Bwowe cited as Nakawa West candidate

In a key finding by the court, Justice Acellan pointed out that Bwowe himself appeared on official nomination documents as a candidate for “Nakawa West,” the same description he challenged.

“Form ND/UO shows that the petitioner, just like all other candidates, was declared as a nominated candidate to represent ‘Nakawa West’ constituency,” Justice Acellam observed. “The petitioner did not raise that anomaly before the Commission or this court.”

The judge stressed that courts must prioritise substantive justice over technicalities and must not be used to bypass democratic choice. “Elective democracy requires that anyone seeking political office subjects himself or herself to the will of the electorate,” he ruled. “This court cannot be seen to subvert the will of the people.”

The court dismissed the petition in its entirety, upheld all nominations and ordered each party to bear its own costs.