LIVE: Thursday March 10 - Uganda Presidential Petition No. 1 of 2016

Day two of the pre-trial in the Uganda Elections Petition.
STORIFY above, LIVE FEED below (Uganda Judiciary report at bottom)



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The Supreme Court of Uganda set Monday, March 14, 2016 to start the hearing of the high-billed presidential election petition filed on March 1, 2016 by one of the former contestants, Mr. John Patrick Amama Mbabazi.

The nine Justices of the court, led by the Hon. Chief Justice, Hon. Justice Bart M. Katureebe, will however, meet with all the parties in the matter on Thursday March 10, 2016 for a pre-petition conference – a meeting where the time table for the petition will be agreed.

The eight other justices on the petition are honorable Justices: Jotham Tumwesigye, Dr. Esther Kisaakye, Mary Stella Arach-Amoko, Augustine Nshimye, Eldad Mwangusya, Rubby Aweri-Opio, Faith Mwondha and Prof. Lillian Tibatemwa Ekirikubinza.

Mr Mbabazi, the former premier, who came third in the presidential race, behind Rtd. Col. Dr Kizza Besigye and President Yoweri Museveni, petitioned the Supreme Court citing irregularities in the elections.
He sued the poll winner, President Museveni jointly with the Electoral Commission and the Attorney General seeking to nullify the February 18, 2016 presidential poll results.
The Conferencing programme that was earlier scheduled for Monday March 7, 2016 was interrupted by an application by the petitioner to be allowed to amend the petition. The three petition respondents sternly opposed the petition amendment, calling it unconstitutional and a time-wasting move by the petitioner.
The Court however, allowed the amendment, saying it has a duty to investigate the manner in which  the presidential polls winner was declared and could not suffocate the petitioner’s efforts in that regard.
Mr Mbabazi’ s team was allowed up to Wednesday (March 9, 2016) to serve all the parties to the petition with the amended petition, affidavits and summarized arguments supporting the petition. The respondents were given up-to Sunday (March 12, 2016) to file their response to the petition as well as their summarized arguments in reply.
The laws governing presidential poll petitions allow the court only 30 days to hear and determine a petition.
President Museveni was on February 20, 2016 declared the winner of the presidential race with 60.62% of the votes, followed by Dr. Besigye, (35.61%), while Amama polled 1.39% of the total votes cast.