Moroto, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | A tribunal handling petitions from National Resistance Movement-NRM party primaries has maintained Francis Adome Lorika as the official Parliamentary candidate in Moroto Municipality.
The declaration was made today in Kampala after consideration of a petition filed by Fred Angella, the incumbent MP citing voter bribery and intimidation of his supporters by the Adome’s camp.
He also challenged the results from Kampswahili Ju polling station where polls ended prematurely, saying that the process was deliberately disrupted by the opponents camp. But, according to the tribunal, the petitioner failed to prove the allegations.
The two had a neck to neck race which, Adome won with a margin of three votes. Speaking to our journalist after being handed the flag on Wednesday, Adome said justice had prevailed and the will of the people respected.
However, his rival said he did not respect the verdict and was going to consult his electorate on the next move. Pressed to say if he would seek reelection as an independent, Angella remained non-committal saying it all depended on what the electorate would advise him to do.
Elsewhere, Former RDC Peter Ken Lochap was also handed a flag after winning the petition filed by Patrick Apuun, MP representing Bokora Constituency.
Apuun too cited election violence, voter bribery, intimidation and other electoral crimes which he failed to adduce evidence for. Apuun could not be reached for comment by press time. More than seven petitions were filed from different constituencies in Karamoja after the NRM primaries.
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