By Bill Dan Arnold Borodi and Kemuel Othieno
Presidential candidate Atuhaire Bright has said that he is prepared to petition the just concluded
Guild Election, in which Elomaboni Abraham was declared winner this evening.
“I am aware of what I am going to do,” he said. “We are going to reclaim our victory, we are
going to cleanse the system,” he added. He also urged his supporters to remain peaceful,
saying, “There is no guild president right now.”
This followed a post on his WhatsApp status, in which Atuhaire claimed the polls were rigged in
favour of his opponent. “You rig an election and celebrate… I will not be rigged, that I swear,
because I already know about it!!” he wrote. Atuhaire is alleged to have already prepared a
petition challenging the validity of the elections. In his campaign WhatsApp group, he said,
“…we were rigged, it was planned sometime back and we were always aware, we filed a
petition two days back” (sic)
An anonymous source inside University Internet Services (UIS) assured The Standard of the
accuracy of the polls. Asked whether they thought rigging was possible, the answer was no. The
source declined to explain the exact science behind UCU’s voting systems, citing propriety.
The Electoral Commission (EC) Chair, Kwajje Asunta Aggrey, had nothing to say on the claims
raised by the candidate. She limited her comments to her confidence in her team, saying, “I
prayed and trust, and did my part and God did His.”
According to the Uganda Christian University Constitution, as amended, Chapter 9 Article 92
(1), every student shall have the right to challenge elections of the guild president or member of
parliament, which shall be done through a petition submitted to the appropriate tribunal within
three days after the election.
Chapter 9, Article 92 (2) states that petitions seeking to overturn a presidential election shall be
submitted to the Director of Student Affairs or the Dean of Students, who shall constitute an
election appeals board to consider the petition and issue a ruling. The election appeals board
shall constitute the DOSA as chairman, the legal advisor to the university, the outgoing speaker,
the chairman of the EC, the general secretary of the EC, the university chaplain, and a senior
member of staff appointed by the Vice-Chancellor.
