Masaka High Court has set September 24 and 25 for hearing a petition challenging the election of State Minister for Water Aisha Sekindi as the Kalungu District Woman Member of Parliament.
The petition was filed by Helen Nakeeya, the National Resistance Movement (NRM) candidate, who is seeking an order for a by-election, alleging that the January 2026 election was marred by violence, vote rigging and other irregularities.
The case came before Justice Bernard Namanya on Wednesday, when the parties agreed on the dates for the hearing to commence.
Ms Nakeeya alleges that her supporters were attacked on the eve of polling, January 14, 2026, by people she believes were linked to Ms Sekindi’s camp.
She alleges that two of her campaigners, Gerald Katumba and Frank Miyiingo, were shot dead while distributing appointment letters to polling agents.
Two other supporters, Yafeesi Ssenabulya and Isma Kasozi, were also allegedly injured in the incident. Ms Nakeeya claims Mr Ssenabulya was shot in the buttocks while Mr Kasozi was shot in the right arm.
Ms Nakeeya is also challenging the election results on grounds of alleged vote rigging and other electoral irregularities and wants court to nullify Ms Sekindi’s victory and order a fresh election.
Justice Namanya adjourned the matter to September 24, when the hearing of the petition will commence.
Eddie Sansa, counsel for Ms Sekindi, said the respondent was ready to proceed with the case.
‘We have had the scheduling of the case ready to proceed with the matter, next week we shall present the evidence that our client won the election and it was free and fair,’ Mr Sansa said.
Ms Sekindi, a long-serving NRM politician, contested the 2026 election as an independent after opting not to participate in the party primaries.
She said at the time that she had received information about a plot to rig her out of the party primaries. The NRM ticket subsequently went to Ms Nakeeya, who was then working as a vendor at Lukaya Road Toll Market.
The election dispute comes against the backdrop of longstanding disagreements among NRM leaders in Kalungu.
The internal divisions, which have persisted for more than a decade, intensified after the 2021 General Election when some NRM members accused Ms Sekindi of working with National Unity Platform (NUP) politicians to retain her seat amid the political wave that affected several NRM legislators in Buganda.
Several attempts have since been made to reconcile the rival groups, but disagreements within the party have continued.