{UAH} Four more NRM MPs fall

Four more NRM MPs fall

Written by DERRICK KIYONGA & SADAB KITATTA KAAYA

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Created: 29 June 2016

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Hajat Rehema Watongola (R) after swearing in as Kamuli MP

Every election petition court ruling since June seems to bring joy and relief to the opposition as more ruling NRM MPs are thrown out of Parliament.

Yesterday was one of the worst days in court sitting  for the ruling NRM. In separate court rulings, NRM lost four more MPs after the High Courts in Jinja, Mbale, Kampala and Lira nullified the February 18 election of Hajat Rehema Watongola (Kamuli municipality), Annet Nyaketcho (Tororo North), Edward Ssembatya (Katikamu South) and Col Charles Okello Engola, the minister of state for Defence and NRM MP for Oyam North.

Tuesday's court rulings brought to 11 the number of NRM MPs in the 10th Parliament who have lost election petitions and subsequently their seats. The 12th loser of a parliamentary seat, Lucy Atim Aciro, was an independent MP. Apart from Nyakecho, whose election was annulled due to voter bribery, the rest of yesterday's casualties lost due to lack of the requisite academic qualifications, bringing to six, the number of MPs who have lost their parliamentary seats over lack of the adequate qualifications.

High court judge Godfrey Namundi ruled at Jinja that Watongola had no academic qualifications to be an MP.

"The first respondent [Watongola] used to fake stamps in order to obtain the certificate of equivalency [A-level]," Justice Namundi said, "That means she has no required academic qualifications to be a Member of Parliament."     

Watongola won the February 18 parliamentary election with 8,175 votes, beating FDC's Salaamu Musumba into second place, with 6,702 votes. In her successful petition, Musumba, the opposition FDC vice chairperson for eastern Uganda, claimed that during her nomination, Watongola  presented a forged certificate for a course in public administration and management from Busoga University, which the institution had recalled.

The former Kamuli district chairperson also referred to minutes of a December 17, 2010 senate meeting of Busoga University, which resolved that a certificate used by Watongola to gain admission to the institution was fake and subsequently recalled the qualifications it had awarded her.

Since she had no Advanced-level certificate, Watongola on nomination day presented what she called an equivalent, a certificate (in public administration and management), a diploma (in public administration and management), and degree (in public administration and management) all from Busoga University. But Musumba through her lawyers; Julius Galisonga and John Isabirye, queried the certificate in public administration.

The lawyers said Watongola couldn't have obtained it in 2004 as she claimed yet the university started teaching the course in 2005. They asserted that all the subsequent qualifications Watongola had obtained from Busoga University were of no consequence since the certificate she had relied on to acquire the rest of the qualifications was forged.

Musumba said during the 2011 elections, the Electoral Commissions disqualified Watongola from standing as an MP after Busoga University denied giving her the certificate and consequently cancelled the diploma and degree earlier awarded to her. In the end, Justice Namundi ruled that Watongola had failed to defend herself.

"The petitioner [Musumba] made a prima facie case and the onus was on the first respondent [Watongola] to rebut the allegations and she has failed to do so," Justice Namundi said.

Though Musumba had attached Busoga University and the National Council for Higher Education as the other respondents in the case, justice Namundi ruled that she was wrong to do so. But in a telephone interview with The Observer on Tuesday, Isabirye, Musumba's lawyer, said if Watongola appeals, they will also file a cross appeal. 

"We still think that the National Council for Higher Education was rightfully sued since it issues the certificate of equivalency," Isabirye said,  "We still think it engaged in fraud and it should be punished but we shall only raise that if Watongola appeals."

In a phone interview with The Observer yesterday, an ecstatic Musumba said, "It is just a matter of time that this kind of fraud would be exposed. These are the sorts of people who are in parliament with no papers at all."

TORORO

Sitting in Mbale, High court Judge Patricia Basaza Wasswa threw out Nyaketcho following a successful petition filed by FDC's Geoffrey Ekanya.  In February, Annette Nyaketcho was declared the newly-elected MP for Tororo North with 8,911 votes, beating Ekanya who got 8,822 votes.

In his petition, Ekanya claimed the electoral commission cancelled results from two polling stations of Mission church polling station and Kamuli Pagoya polling station all in Mukuju sub-county.

THE CASUALTIES

Despite the court losses, NRM secretary general Justine Kasule Lumumba in a recent interview with The Observer said the party had scored highly in the electoral petitions. A total of 114 petitions were filed in court challenging results of the February 18 elections and so far, 30 petitions have been disposed of.

Four petitions were withdrawn after mediation between the respondents and petitioners. These included Deborah Mugerwa against the Speaker of Parliament, Rebecca Kadaga (Kamuli Woman), Arthur Katongole against Sarah Kityo Babirye (Youths, Central), Francis Ssozi against the minister of state for Tourism, Godfrey Kiwanda (Mityana North) and Isha Ntumwa against Anifa Kawooya (Sembabule Woman).

The NRM secretariat yesterday cushioned itself against blame for fielding candidates with questionable academic papers despite compelling candidates in the party's primaries to pay Shs 2m for, among other things, verification of their academic documents. The secretariat's communications officer Rogers Mulindwa, told The Observer yesterday that the party played its part.

"Verification of documents was done and we [NRM] cannot entirely carry the blame because NCHE was also involved, but we have also seen incidents where people have been rejected over academic documents and they turn around and come back," Mulindwa said, citing the case of Sembabule Woman MP Anifah Kawooya who has had endless legal battles over her qualifications.

"I think there is something wrong [with the systems] which should be looked at nationally," he added.

Mulindwa said the party decided that all losers appeal the High court rulings at the Court of Appeal and once the rulings are upheld, it (NRM) will find other candidates to field.

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Gwokto La'Kitgum

"Even a small dog can piss on a tall Building", Jim Hightower

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