Joanita Nalule, the former National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate for Masaka District Woman Member of Parliament, is seeking to overturn the election of her opponent, Joan Namutaawe, accusing her of defaming her during campaigns for the last general polls.
The Electoral Commission declared National Unity Platform (NUP) candidate Joan Namutaawe the winner of the January 15 general elections with 16,064 votes, defeating Nalule, who garnered 15,559 votes.
However, Nalule petitioned the High Court seeking to overturn the results, citing alleged electoral law violations by her opponent, including voter bribery and the use of derogatory language during the campaigns.
She accuses Namutaawe of defaming her during campaigns when she publicly labelled her a thief, a witch and a murderer who caused the death of her opponents in the 2021 general election.
While testifying in court presided over by Justice Rosette Comfort Kania, Nalule indicated that she suffered public ridicule as a result of scornful statements made against her by the opponent.
She told the court that in some areas, her campaign meetings were disrupted by groups of residents who repeatedly referred to the defamatory remarks made by Namutaawe, something that disorganised her psychologically throughout the campaigns.
However, Nalule’s attempt to have video footage containing the alleged defamatory remarks admitted as evidence hit a snag after she failed to present the device used to record it in court.
Justice Kania overruled Nalule’s request to admit the video, citing a break in the chain of evidence. The judge noted that electronic evidence must meet the legal requirements for admissibility, including presenting the device used to capture the footage for examination.
Nalule further told the court that, besides the alleged omission of results from two polling stations during the final tally, Namutaawe committed other electoral offences, including voter bribery through the distribution of pieces of soap, sugar and money.
Nalule presented three witnesses who confessed to receiving bars of soap and sugar from Namutaawe’s agents on the eve of the election in an attempt to influence their choice of candidate.
However, Namutaawe’s lawyer, Samuel Ssekyewa, dismissed the voter bribery allegations, arguing that the witnesses were neither residents nor registered voters in the areas where the alleged incidents occurred. He questioned why Namutaawe’s agents would distribute the items to them.
Ssekyewa further challenged the credibility of the allegations, noting that the witnesses had not presented video recordings or photographs of the alleged items, or evidence that the matter had been reported to the relevant authorities.
The trial judge adjourned the hearing to Saturday to allow the court to receive testimony from additional witnesses.
