Museveni runs to court to block a petition on his signatures.

By; Rachael Najjuma

22^nd Oct. 2020

President Yoweri Museveni’s has through his lawyers asked the Supreme Court to dismiss a petition seeking to stop presidential aspirants from looking for signatures of their supporters before being nominated by the Electoral Commission.

In September, Presidential Aspirant Ivan Samuel Ssebadduka petitioned the Supreme Court saying that due to COVID-19, the Electoral Commission should be restrained from requiring the presidential aspirants from looking for nomination signatures in two thirds of districts in the country.

In line with the requirements of the Electoral Commission, all aspiring candidates are required to collect 100 signatures from two-thirds of the total number of districts in the country as a precondition for their nomination. The nominations are expected to start early in the coming month of November 2020.

However, Ssebadduka who is also the Editor in Chief of ‘Journal of True Science’ argued in his documents before the Supreme Court that if indeed COVID-19 exists, the presidential aspirants were going to get infected or infect the people they will be looking for signatures from.

He also noted that it doesn’t make sense for politicians especially presidential candidates to be subjected to virtual campaigns when they are asked to go and look for signatures for nominations from about 100 districts in the country.

The respondents to his petition : President Yoweri Museveni, Electoral Commission and its Chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama and the Ministry of Health have faulted the said respondents for being ignorant about coronavirus and Museveni is ready to challenge them scientifically in court and show them that the virus is not in Uganda.

However, although Museveni was sued despite enjoying immunity against being sued as a sitting President, has through his Senior Private Secretary for Legal Affairs Flora Kiconco asked court to dismiss the petition. Kiconco contends  that the Supreme Court has no jurisdiction to entertain a Petition against Museveni as a president  if it it’s not an election petition.

However, the Electoral Commission has also put in its submissions defending its decision before the Supreme Court can put the parties for conferencing on October 26 2020.