KAMPALA. David Kamukama, a member of the NRM party has sued the Minister of Science Technology and Innovation, Dr Elioda Tumwesigye, over holding the NRM party card for the ongoing primaries Sheema municipality constituency.
Dr Tumwesigy is currently Sheema North MP, but wants to contest for Sheema Municipality constituency.
In his suit at the High Court Civil Division, Kamukama also sued his party the NRM which he says wrongfully nominated Tumwesigye in the party primaries.
Mr Kamukama states that on April 24, the chairperson of NRM electoral commission issued a road map clearly indicating dates for nomination of candidates which was to take place from May 7 and 9 for its primaries in the new municipalities including Sheema Municipality constituency.
According to the documents, Mr Kamukama claims that him and other candidates were duly nominated by NRM electoral commission on May 8, which same day Dr Tumwesigye applied for his nomination but he was not nominated and he was given two days to finalise and put his nomination in order.
Documents indicate that Dr Tumwesigye turned up on May 14 when his nomination had already been cancelled and the decision had already been communicated to him.
Mr Kamukama claims he and other contestants sought redress from the electoral body about the belated and thus illegal nomination of Dr Tumwesigye In vain.
“The law requires that there would be a candidate to be nominated within a specified period of time by the NRM electoral commission, however Dr Tumwesigye was never nominated within the specified period as required by the law.
He was nominated more than four days after nominations closed,” Mr Kamukama claims.
He claims that the acts of the respondents (NRM and Dr Tumwesigye)have occasioned stress and anxiety on him and he is seeking for judicial redress to correct the administrative wrongs of NRM.
He also seeks an order of mandamus compelling NRM to quash the candidature of Tumwesigye for the NRM party primary elections for Sheema Municipality constituency MP.
Meanwhile, a voter has run to the Constitutional Court asking it to block the Electoral Commission from conducting elections in the newly created municipalities.
Mr Eddie Kwizera, a former MP of Bufumbira East Constituency in the 9th Parliament claims that the new municipalities of Bugiri , Sheema, Ibanda, Apac, Nebbi and Kotido were illegally created because Parliament does not have powers to do so.
In his petition , Kwizera says instead of creating municipalities, Parliament should have created new counties upon which the Electoral Commission could base to demarcate constituencies.
He has therefore asked court to declare as null and void Parliament’s resolution dated made in October 2016 to create the seven municipalities.
