Ugandan top court rejects opposition poll challenge

KAMPALA – Uganda’s Supreme Court yesterday rejected an opposition challenge to February’s disputed elections, refusing to annul results that cemented President Yoweri Museveni’s 20-year hold on power.

By a narrow 4-3 vote, the seven-member panel said opposition leader Kizza Besigye’s Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) had failed to prove the polls were tainted by fraud and government malfeasance, even as they acknowledged irregularities. These anomalies, however, did not rise to the level of requiring a re-run of the February 23 elections in which Museveni trounced Besigye and the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) won commanding control of parliament, it said in its ruling.”We find that there was non-compliance with the principles laid down under the constitution and the electoral law,” Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki said.”But by a majority decision of four to three we find that it was not proved to the satisfaction of the court that the failure to comply with the provisions of the law affected the results in a substantial manner,” he said.”We find that no illegal practices or any other offence was proved to the satisfaction of the court to have been committed by (Museveni) personally or by his agents with his knowledge or consent or approval,” he said.”It is hereby ordered that the petition be dismissed.”Odoki said.But Odaki added that the justices had grave concerns about improprieties raised by the opposition challenge.Those included harassment and intimidation of the opposition by the country’s security forces, “massive disenfranchisement” of voters,” apparent bias on the part of some electoral officials, and inadequate voter education, the ruling said.Odoki said those matters “should be urgently addressed” by the relevant authorities to ensure the viability of Uganda’s democracy.Government officials did not address the shortcomings detailed by the court but said they were pleased with the decision and urged the opposition to end its protests against the election results.”We’re happy with the verdict and we call upon Ugandans to go back to work as the elections have ended,” Defence Minister Amama Mbabazi told AFP outside the courthouse.Besigye, 50, had mounted the strongest challenge yet to the 62-year-old Museveni’s two-decade hold on power but won just 37 per cent of the vote to the incumbent’s nearly 60 per cent, according to final official results.Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) said the election was “free, fair and democratic” and called the results “credible”.But government lawyers representing Uganda’s national election board – while admitting to minor counting mistakes – urged the court to dismiss the challenge with prejudice, arguing that Besigye had not proved his case.- Nampa-AFPThese anomalies, however, did not rise to the level of requiring a re-run of the February 23 elections in which Museveni trounced Besigye and the ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) won commanding control of parliament, it said in its ruling.”We find that there was non-compliance with the principles laid down under the constitution and the electoral law,” Chief Justice Benjamin Odoki said.”But by a majority decision of four to three we find that it was not proved to the satisfaction of the court that the failure to comply with the provisions of the law affected the results in a substantial manner,” he said.”We find that no illegal practices or any other offence was proved to the satisfaction of the court to have been committed by (Museveni) personally or by his agents with his knowledge or consent or approval,” he said.”It is hereby ordered that the petition be dismissed.”Odoki said.But Odaki added that the justices had grave concerns about improprieties raised by the opposition challenge.Those included harassment and intimidation of the opposition by the country’s security forces, “massive disenfranchisement” of voters,” apparent bias on the part of some electoral officials, and inadequate voter education, the ruling said.Odoki said those matters “should be urgently addressed” by the relevant authorities to ensure the viability of Uganda’s democracy.Government officials did not address the shortcomings detailed by the court but said they were pleased with the decision and urged the opposition to end its protests against the election results.”We’re happy with the verdict and we call upon Ugandans to go back to work as the elections have ended,” Defence Minister Amama Mbabazi told AFP outside the courthouse.Besigye, 50, had mounted the strongest challenge yet to the 62-year-old Museveni’s two-decade hold on power but won just 37 per cent of the vote to the incumbent’s nearly 60 per cent, according to final official results.Museveni’s ruling National Resistance Movement (NRM) said the election was “free, fair and democratic” and called the results “credible”.But government lawyers representing Uganda’s national election board – while admitting to minor counting mistakes – urged the court to dismiss the challenge with prejudice, arguing that Besigye had not proved his case.- Nampa-AFP