Kampala, Uganda: The National Unity Platform (NUP) Secretary General, David Lewis Rubongoya, has declared his intention to challenge the election of Hajjat Minsa Kabanda as Kampala Central Division Member of Parliament, accusing the ruling party candidate of benefiting from widespread electoral malpractice that marred the 2026 general elections.
Rubongoya, who stood as the NUP flag bearer in the January 15 parliamentary elections, lost to Kabanda, the National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate, who polled 22,332 votes against his 18,242, a margin of 4,090 votes.
Addressing the media on Wednesday, Rubongoya said the election was marred by serious irregularities, including ballot stuffing and vote rigging allegedly orchestrated in Kabanda’s favour.
“I won 17 out of the 20 parishes in Kampala Central, but my victory was stolen,” Rubongoya said, accusing Kabanda of influencing electoral officials to overturn the will of voters.
He further alleged that Kabanda colluded with security personnel at Summit View polling stations, including Nakasero State House, to inflate votes and secure what he described as an illegal victory.
Rubongoya claimed that his polling agents were deliberately blocked from accessing some of the contested polling stations to facilitate the alleged manipulation of results.
As a result, he said he is preparing to file an election petition challenging Kabanda’s victory, insisting that the matter must be placed on record even if the courts ultimately fail to grant relief. “There is no guarantee of justice, but we must submit the evidence so that the truth is documented,” Rubongoya said.
Efforts to obtain a response from Kabanda were unsuccessful by press time, as repeated phone calls and messages went unanswered.
The dispute comes amid wider complaints by NUP leaders over alleged electoral irregularities in several parts of the country. Ronald Balimwezo, the Kampala Lord Mayor–elect, and Paul Mwiru have both criticised the Electoral Commission, accusing it of presiding over flawed tallying processes that they say denied NUP candidates victory.
Mwiru alleged that NUP lost the Jinja City mayoral race after Declaration of Results forms were falsified in favour of the NRM candidate, claiming that some polling stations recorded more votes than the actual voter turnout.
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