NRM flag bearers in Kampala have welcomed a ruling by the Kawempe Chief Magistrate’s Court at Kanyanya allowing an election petition challenging the victory of National Unity Platform’s Hamudan Kigozi Semugooma to proceed to a full hearing.
The petition was filed by Alex Sempungu, the NRM flag bearer for Kawempe North 1, against Kigozi and the Electoral Commission.
The ruling was delivered electronically through the Electronic Court Case Management Information System (ECCMIS) on September 18 by Kawempe Chief Magistrate Doreen Ainembabazi.
Sempungu and other NRM candidates celebrated the ruling at Muyenga in Kampala, saying they viewed it as an opportunity to have their complaints about the 2026 local government elections heard on their merits.
“We are here to celebrate the court ruling by Justice Ainembabazi on the election petition filed against NUP and the Electoral Commission,” Sempungu said.
Ainembabazi rejected preliminary objections raised by Kigozi and the Electoral Commission seeking to have Sempungu’s petition dismissed before a full hearing.
The magistrate found that the objections were misconceived because they did not raise pure points of law that could dispose of the petition without evidence being heard.
According to the ruling, the petition raised issues that required determination after hearing evidence, including questions concerning Kigozi’s qualifications, residence and the validity of his nomination documents.
The court therefore found that it had jurisdiction to hear and determine the issues raised in the petition.
“The objections are accordingly overruled and the petition shall proceed to hearing on its merits. I so order,” Ainembabazi ruled.
The decision means that the court has not yet determined whether the allegations made by Sempungu are true. Those issues will be considered during the substantive hearing of the petition.
Sempungu’s petition challenges Kigozi’s election and raises several allegations concerning his nomination and eligibility to contest.
Among other things, Sempungu alleges that Kigozi’s nomination papers were falsified and that he did not meet the residence requirements for the electoral area in which he contested.
He also alleges that documents submitted during the nomination process contained a forged stamp belonging to a commissioner for oaths.
Kigozi and the Electoral Commission had raised preliminary objections against the petition, asking court to dispose of the matter without proceeding to a full hearing.
The court, however, found that the objections could not settle the substantive questions raised by Sempungu.
The ruling has since attracted attention among NRM candidates who have filed election petitions in different parts of Kampala.
The petitioners say the decision gives them an opportunity to have their complaints examined by the courts rather than being dismissed on preliminary grounds.
Other NRM flag bearers who attended the gathering included Patrick Wamulanga from Kiwatule Parish, Jonas Asasira from Kabalagala Parish, Aidah Janat Namukwaya from Buziga, Ronald Mbaziira from Lubaga 1 and Flora Brenda from Makindye II.
They praised President Yoweri Museveni, the NRM leadership and the Judiciary for what they described as allowing their petitions to proceed through the legal process.
Mbaziira said the court process would give them an opportunity to challenge the election results through the established legal procedures.
He also said Kampala Lord Mayor Ronald Balimwezo should be prepared to work with whoever emerges from the court and electoral processes.
“We are going to seek justice through court. If the court finds that there were irregularities, it will make the appropriate orders,” Mbaziira said.
