As the battle for the ownership of National Unity Platform (NUP) takes shape, a new legal challenge emerged yesterday with the Electoral Commission (EC) declining to gazette the party’s new constitution.
The rejection was announced yesterday following a closed door meeting between EC officials and NUP’s top echelons at the electoral body’s headquarters in Kampala.
During the meeting, EC’s chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama, told NUP officials that the electoral body cannot gazette the party constitution when there is a pending legal battle about the legality of the party’s new constitution.
The development comes at a time when NUP recently announced a major registration exercise of members amid an internal jostle for power that largely pits former Leader of Opposition Mathias Mpuuga, who is also the Nyendo-Mukungwe division MP and the party president, Robert Kyagulanyi alias Bobi Wine.
Some party members, mainly from greater Masaka, the major base of Mpuuga, contested the exercise, noting that the party is operating without a constitution.
Other members argued that NUP should not conduct any party activities ahead of the 2026 roadmap without first settling allegations that current leaders forged the party constitution.
ALLEGATIONS
The allegations are contained in a case that was filed by founders of the party — Paul Ssimbwa Kagombe, Moses Nkonge Kibalama, Moses Luyinda, Del Wilbert Omony and Joseph Emmanuel Kasirye.
Party officials that were sued, include Kyagulanyi, secretary general David Lewis Rubongoya, Leader of Opposition Joel Ssenyonyi, secretary for mobilisation Fred Nyanzi and party treasurer Benjamin katana.
The founders of NUP also sued the EC over the matter, noting that they allegedly colluded with NUP by accepting the party to run with a purported forged constitution.
In their suit, they want court to expunge alleged forged constitution from the official records and vest NUP party authority in the vice-president as the original constitution states.
They argue that Article 5 of the old constitution states that the party president only serves as the party flag bearer and not the leader of the party as the current party echelons purport under the allegedly forged constitution.
Executive power of the party, they argue, is conferred unto the vice president by the old constitution, which they argue the current ‘Kyagulanyi group’ discarded without convening a delegates conference as per Political Parties and Organisations Act, 2005.
MEETING, OUTCOMES
To iron out the emerging differences, EC yesterday summoned NUP officials under the Kyagulanyi group and the founder of the party led by Kibalama. Explaining the request for EC to gazette the constitution, NUP party lawyer George Musisi said
“EC didn’t make a decision on blocking the constitution. The hearing was, actually, on the request of NUP because some people had made a challenge to the new constitution.”
So, when EC received that challenge, it kept quiet until the secretary general wrote to them, asking why they didn’t go ahead and gazette; then, it invited us for a hearing. But these people had gone to court last week, suing NUP and EC.
So, the EC chairperson said since we are joint parties to the suit, it is not fair for us to go ahead and make a decision yet there is a matter in court.”
NUP RESPONSE
Explaining contents of the new party constitution, Rubongoya said it increases the number of leadership positions and expands the delegates conference membership.
“It is like the EC and Kibalama’s group do not want our constitution to be progressive,” Rubongoya told New Vision, adding that the current party activities, such as registration of members, will continue.
“This is something small. The party has had a lot of hardships and challenging matters before. This is one of them, but soon it will also be no more,” he said, noting that during yesterday’s meeting, EC officials and the `Kibamala group’ didn’t raise “any valid complaint” about the new constitution.
