The National Resistance Movement (NRM) has lined up a team of 40 lawyers to defend the party against a petition in which the National Unity Platform (NUP) team is seeking the annulment of the election of Yoweri Kaguta Museveni in the January 14 presidential election.
On Monday, NUP president Robert Kyagulanyi filed a legal challenge in the country’s Supreme Court, seeking cancellation of the results of last month’s presidential election that handed incumbent Yoweri Museveni the victory.
NUP listed 26 grounds including ballot stuffing, intimidation of NUP agents and supporters and pre-ticked ballot papers.
In preparation NRM has put a 40-man legal team led by the party legal director Oscar Kihika.
They will face off with the National Unity Platform’s 25-man legal team who petitioned the Supreme Court to overturn the outcome of the general election.
NRM's lawyers while sharing their thoughts on the party’s preparedness for the election petition said that the law is against the petitioners.
Kihika said that he feels sorry for the petitioners adding that, it is only 20% of the evidence collected that is useful, referring to the rest as ‘wolokoso’ (hearsay).
"It would be silly not to prepare for an election petition. You start preparing early so that when the petitions come, you are prepared. I feel sorry for the petitioners, it is only 20% of the evidence collected that is useful, the rest is hearsay,” Kihika said.
The deputy attorney general, Jackson Kafuuzi, confirmed receipt of the court summons saying these issues are always about evidence especially on the side of the petitioner.
"You can file a thousand allegations but all that matters is the substance in there. If there is no substance then it will be wasting time,” Kafuuzi.