The High Court in Kampala has upheld a decision by the Electoral Commission to disqualify National Unity Platform (NUP)’s Mathias Walukagga from the Busiro East MP race over lack of required academic qualifications.
In a judgment delivered electronically on Sunday, Justice Simon Peter Kinobe dismissed Walukagga’s appeal, in which he had challenged the Commission’s decision to nullify his nomination following a complaint by a registered voter in the constituency.
Justice Kinobe ruled that Mr. Walukagga’s Mature Age/Aptitude Test certificate, which he presented for nomination, had expired before the nomination date and could not lawfully support his candidacy for a parliamentary seat.
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Mr. Walukagga was nominated on October 23, 2025, to contest for the Busiro East legislative position currently held by Medard Sseggona.
Walukagga’s nomination was later challenged by a registered voter, John Lubowa Kilimiro, who petitioned the Electoral Commission alleging that the Kyengera Town Council Mayor did not possess the requisite academic qualifications to contest for the MP seat.
In his judgment on Sunday, Justice Kinobe agreed with the Electoral Commission and Kilimiro, noting that while the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE) is mandated to equate academic qualifications, the Electoral Commission has constitutional and statutory authority to determine whether a candidate meets the qualifications for nomination at the time of nomination.
“The question before the Electoral Commission was whether the academic credentials presented by the petitioner were valid for purposes of nomination. The discussion revolved around the expiry of the same,” Justice Kinobe stated.
Justice Kinobe noted that the court had examined the timeline of events and found that Walukagga’s certificate expired on June 12, 2025, while the nomination took place on October 23, 2025.
“From the above timeline, I note that the petitioner’s only qualification had expired by the nomination date, rendering both the certificate and NCHE equivalence invalid,” the judge ruled.
Justice Kinobe further held that a letter from IUIU could not override the clear provisions of the law.
“The letter from IUIU dated November 11, 2025, suggesting conditional validity if the certificate is used to enroll for further studies, cannot override the express legal framework,” he said.
Additionally, Justice Kinobe rejected the NUP candidate’s argument that the Electoral Commission lacked jurisdiction to hear Kilimiro’s complaint and further dismissed preliminary objections challenging the validity of the Commission’s decision and the competence of the appeal, finding that the petition was properly before the court.
Hence, Justice Kinobe dismissed Walukagga’s appeal and upheld the decision to cancel his nomination.
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