The Hoima Chief Magistrate, George Kunihira, on Friday night adjourned a vote recount case filed by the National Resistance Movement (NRM) Party’s Female Youth Representative flag bearer in Parliament, Ampaire Dianah.
Ampaire, through her legal team of M/S Factum Associated Advocates, is challenging the declaration of independent candidate Kanyesigye Mercy as the winner of the election held on 6 February 2026 at Hoima City Stadium.
Kanyesigye was declared the winner with 216 votes, while Ampaire reportedly garnered 198 votes, a narrow margin of 18 votes.
The hearing of the application commenced on Friday morning amid tight security, with officers from the Police, UPDF, and Prisons, among other sister agencies, deployed inside and around the courtroom. Members of the public were granted limited access to the court premises.
Kanyesigye was represented by lawyers Asuman Basalirwa, Kamukama David, Mugisha Nuwagaba, and Ivan Lagu. After listening to submissions from both parties, Magistrate Kunihira adjourned the matter and announced that the ruling on the vote recount petition will be delivered on Tuesday, 17 February 2026.
Speaking to journalists after the proceedings, Kanyesigye said it is the right of any aggrieved candidate to seek redress in court. She urged the youth to remain calm, reiterating that she is the legitimate winner and affirming her resolve to defend the victory.
Basalirwa said the defense team is ready to respect and abide by the court’s final decision, adding that they had fully executed their mandate in representing Kanyesigye.
He noted that the team presented all their arguments and attempted to tender video evidence to support their case, emphasizing that the electoral process in question was broadcast live by several media organizations.
According to Basalirwa, the intention was to demonstrate to both the court and the public what transpired during the exercise. He questioned the resistance to playing video evidence if allegations persist that votes were wrongly attributed to Kanyesigye.
“If you allege that votes were misallocated, yet cameras were present and the process was witnessed live by the public, then refusing to allow that evidence to be played raises serious concerns,” Basalirwa argued.
He maintained that the recordings are consistent with footage already aired by various media houses and underscored the importance of transparency in the pursuit of justice.
Basalirwa concluded that the defense team remains prepared to pursue the matter to its logical conclusion while respecting whatever outcome the court ultimately delivers.
