5
After careful perusal of the DR Forms attached by the respondent and with particular reference to
page 223 of the record, when I calculated the votes denied to the respondent, they add up to 402 and
not 307.
I have verified the above evidence of the returning officer which was accepted by the trial judge.
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Even if the 402 votes are added to those polled by the respondent, the winning margin still remains
too high.
It was wrong to have added the number of the registered voters in the 17 polling stations to any of
the candidates because that was speculation as to who voted for whom and it cannot be said that all
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of them voted for only the respondent. Hence the trial judge erred when he added the total number
of registered voters in the 17 polling stations to the respondent alone.
I find like the trial court did, that the non–compliance did not affect the elections in a substantial
manner.
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In the result, I hold that the appeal has merit and succeeds. The judgment of the lower court and the
orders made therefrom are set aside and in their place substitute an order dismissing the petition
with costs.
25
Although the appeal for the second appellant also succeeds, the Electoral Commission did not show
interest in prosecuting the appeal and was absent. The lower court and this court found noncompliance of the electoral law by the Electoral Commission. If the elections had been managed in
accordance with the electoral laws mentioned in this judgment, there would have been nothing
wrong with the results from the 17 polling stations; most probably the respondent would not have
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challenged the results in court.
While the respondent would have had a reasonable cause of action based on non-compliance, she is
to blame for alleging acts of bribery by the appellant, which, she could not prove. I would in the
circumstances order that the costs of the 1st appellant, be borne by the 2nd appellant and the
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respondent, whereby, the Electoral Commission, shall pay 2/3 and the respondent 1/3 of the taxed
costs here and below.
Dated at Kampala this …03rd ….Day of…July….2012.
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