Katikamu South MP kicked out of Parliament

The newly elected Katikamu South Constituency legislator Edward Ssembatya becomes the latest MP to be kicked out of the tenth Parliament. Courtesy photo

KAMPALA. The newly elected Katikamu South Constituency legislator Edward Ssembatya becomes the latest MP to be kicked out of the tenth Parliament with court ordering the Electoral Commission (EC) to organize fresh elections in the same constituency.

Mr Ssembatya (NRM) was thrown out of Parliament on grounds that he did not have the requisite academic papers of Advanced Level in order for him to continue representing the people of Katikamu South constituency.
The election petition was successfully filed by Mr Alfred Muwanga, the political rival of Mr Ssembatya who challenged his election mainly on academic papers.

While annulling Mr Ssembatya’s seat, presiding Judge Isabirye Kaweesa, held that there were discrepancies in the names of Ssembatya that appeared on several of his academic papers that he presented for nomination of his election to the EC.
The judge explained that the discrepancies in Ssebamtya’s names on his academic papers meant that they were forged probably from the infamous Nasser Road in Kampala.

In further faulting Mr Ssembatya’s academic papers, Justice Kaweesa wondered why sat for Ordinary Level exams under the names of Edward N. Ssembatya in 1972 at St Henry’s Kitovu College but was later admitted at Uganda Management Institute (UMI) under different names of Ssembatya Edward Ndawula in 2006.
The Judge also noted in his judgment that Mr Ssembatya did not know the actual duration of his two diploma courses that he claimed he undertook at UMI as he stated during the cross examination.

To that effect, the court ordered Mr Ssembatya to meet the costs of the petition that his rival Mr Muwanga used to successfully pursue this petition.
Election laws in Uganda demand that for one to become a member of parliament, he/she must have attained a minimum level certificate of education of senior six or its equivalent.
The annulling of Mr Ssembatya’s election comes at the time when over ten MPs have had their elections annulled on various grounds including lack of academic papers, voter bribery, and noncompliance of the election rules.