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Aminah Mutesi Nalugoda (L) and Stella Maris Nankwanga (R)
By Ruth Nanyonga
The High Court in Iganga District has nullified the election of Bugweri District Woman Member of Parliament Stella Maris Nankwanga over failure to present the required academic credentials at the time of her nomination.
The court has instead declared her closest challenger, Aminah Mutesi Nalugoda, who came second in the January 15, 2026 parliamentary elections, as the duly elected Woman MP for Bugweri District.
In a judgment delivered on November 13, 2026, Justice Simon Peter Kinobe ruled that Nankwanga did not satisfy the minimum academic requirements for election to Parliament.
The judge found that the academic documents she presented to the Electoral Commission during nomination did not establish that she possessed the minimum Advanced Level qualification or its equivalent as required by the Constitution and the Parliamentary Elections Act.
“The 1st respondent did not present the required academic documents at the time of nomination and therefore she was not qualified for the election as Woman MP,” Justice Kinobe ruled.
The petition was filed by Mutesi on March 5, 2026, challenging Nankwanga’s eligibility following the January elections.
According to the Electoral Commission results, Nankwanga was declared winner with 15,151 votes, while Mutesi obtained 13,683 votes. Another candidate, Mercy Walukamba, polled 10,767 votes.
Mutesi argued that Nankwanga had presented a Post Basic Diploma in Public Health which was not accredited by the National Council for Higher Education and had not provided the required certificate of equivalence for her Certificate in Mental Health Nursing.
In her defence, Nankwanga maintained that she possessed the necessary qualifications, including an Ordinary Level certificate, qualifications in Mental Health Nursing and a Diploma in Public Health.
She argued that her academic qualifications were recognised and had been verified by the Electoral Commission.
The Electoral Commission also defended her nomination, insisting that she possessed qualifications higher than Advanced Level and that the election had been conducted lawfully.
However, the court found that Nankwanga’s Certificate in Mental Health Nursing could not independently establish Advanced Level equivalence because she had not obtained and submitted the required certificate of equivalence from the National Council for Higher Education at the time of nomination.
The court also noted that the certificate initially presented for the Public Health qualification was described as a Post Basic Diploma, which the National Council for Higher Education had confirmed was not an accredited programme.
Although the college later corrected the academic documents to reflect a Diploma in Public Health, the judge said the correction was made after nomination.
Justice Kinobe held that a candidate must possess and present the required academic qualifications at the time of nomination, adding that documents obtained or corrected later cannot retrospectively validate an otherwise defective nomination.
The judge further faulted the Electoral Commission for failing to determine a complaint lodged by Mutesi’s agent challenging Nankwanga’s academic qualifications before the elections.
The court observed that the complaint had been formally submitted but was not heard, despite the Commission’s argument that the complainant had failed to attend a scheduled hearing.
On the remedies, the judge ruled that a fresh election was unnecessary because the law empowers the High Court to declare another candidate duly elected where the declared winner is found not to have been qualified.
The court noted that excluding Nankwanga left Mutesi as the candidate with the highest number of valid votes.
It therefore set aside Nankwanga’s election and declared Mutesi the duly elected Woman MP for Bugweri District.
The petition was allowed, with the first respondent and the Electoral Commission ordered to share the costs equally.
The judgment brings to a close the election dispute that arose from the January 2026 parliamentary elections, in which Nankwanga had initially been declared the winner.