The court of appeal has today Friday 25th 2022 declared Joyce Bagala Ntwata as the rightfully elected woman member of parliament of Mityana district beating Judith Nabakooba.
Lands Minister Nabakoba took Bagala to court after the 14th Jan 2021 elections accusing her of voter fraud and election malpractices. The High Court in Mubende last year ruled in favor of Nabakooba stating that there was voter bribery, multiple voting during the January 14 polls in Mityana committed by Bagala or her agents.
The high court ruled that there was non-compliance with the electoral laws and this led to the presiding judges to order for a fresh election after throwing Bagala out of parliament.
Joyce Bagala did not take this lightly and also challenged the ruling at the Court of Appeal.
The judges who include Geoffrey Kiryabwire, Stephen Musota and Christopher Gashirabake reasoned with Bagala and Electoral Commission’s lawyers that the lower court was wrong to throw Bagala out and order a fresh election.
“Both the quantitative and qualitative tests should have been applied in filing of the non-compliance with electoral laws by Nabakooba. The claimant however didn’t show how the non-compliance would have changed the outcome of the election results,” the justices ruled.
The judges concluded that the main appeal by Bagala is upheld and the decision of the trial court annulling the election of the plaintiff (Nabakooba) as Woman Member of parliament for Mityana district.
The court of appeal is the last authority for parliamentary election petitioning and was the last chance for the lands minister to appeal meaning Joyce Bagala is the elected Woman Member of Parliament of Mityana 2021-2026.