Former Presidential Candidate Willy Mayambala has asked the Supreme Court to allow him inherit Robert Kyagulanyi’s election petition.
In a letter dated 25th February, 2021, Mayambala told Supreme Court that he objects the withdraw of presidential petition formerly logged in by the National Unity Platform (NUP) leader.
“I as well write to express interest in taking on the presidential petition and seek to inherit the petition from Hon Kyagulanyi Ssentamu and seek to be guided, “Mayambala said.
” I wish to reaffirm that I presidential candidate Willy Mayambala have great interest in the presidential petition going on and being listened to by the Honourable Court, please grant me the necessary permission to go on.”
Kyagulanyi aka Bobi Wine on Wednesday formally applied to the Supreme Court asking to withdrawal his presidential election petition.
His lawyers, led by Medard Lubega Sseggona filed the application asking leave to withdraw the petition as a whole.
Kyagulanyi listed six reasons for withdrawing the petition that are supported with arguments in an affidavit of 22 paragraphs. According to Kyagulanyi, his witnesses are being abducted, tortured, harassed, and intimidated by state security operatives at the watch of President, Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, and Attorney General, the first and third respondents to the presidential elections petition respectively.
He also argued that the organs of the state like the Uganda Police Force and National Identification of Registrations of Persons Authority -NIRA, are being used by the respondents to investigate and infringe on his privacy and that of his witnesses.
The musician turned politician also alleged that the court has applied the rules governing the Presidential Election Petitions to his disadvantage. He cites the court’s decision rejecting his application to amending his pleadings.
Speaking during a press conference on Monday in Kampala, Bobi Wine said Court has clearly indicated that it can’t provide justice to him after blocking him to provide additional evidence.
Kyagulanyi noted that the case will now be taken to the public court since Ugandan courts have failed to show that they are independent but instead continue to work for President Museveni. He further said the people of Uganda will have the final say.
“We are withdrawing from the courts but we are not opting for violence. We are withdrawing the case from Mr Owiny Dollo’s court,” he said.
The development came hot on the heels of Supreme Court’s decision to reject Bobi Wine’s bid to file additional affidavits in support of his petition challenging the victory of President Museveni in the January 14 elections.
In an eight to one majority ruling last Friday, justice night Percy Tuhaise dismissed NUP’s application that sought extra time to file his new affidavits.
A few days ago, the outgoing Kyadondo East legislator threatened Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo that if he does not step down from hearing his case, he (Bobi Wine) will withdraw his petition citing conflict of interest.
He however said he no longer feels the Owiny Dollo led court has what it takes to deliver justice to Ugandans whom he says overwhelmingly voted for change but their victory was robbed in favor of Museveni.
As such, he demanded that the chief justice, along with two other justices on the nine justice panel step down for he says it’s been established that the three have in the past had personal and professional relationships with President Museveni, a defendant in the matter before the very court which makes the prospect of justice highly unlikely.
“We went to court seeking justice. As demonstrated above, all we have received so far is injustice and unfairness. It is however not surprising that Mr. Owiny-Dollo is behaving in this manner, although we hoped he would conduct the affairs of our highest court judiciously,” Bobi Wine said.
However, according to Justice Dollo, whoever thinks can induce or intimidate him should be ready for a crash.
“Nobody should have the fear that we will favour any person in this petition, we took an oath to defend. We did not invite anyone to this court if you have Plan B, go ahead with it but do not bring underserved chaos in court,” he told Court last Friday during the hearing of Bobi Wine’s application to allow his additional 127 affidavits.
“The last time we sat here I spoke on how we will conduct ourselves in the matter before us. The lordships as it is provided for in the constitution took an oath to protect it without fear or favor, affection or ill-will…..All matters that arise outside court we don’t have time for it. If anyone thinks they can intimidate, blackmail the Chief Justice Of Uganda, he is going to crash.”
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