{KAMPALA. Uganda Peoples Congress (UPC) party officials have said a delegates conference will soon be held to elect a new party president.}
The announcement follows last Friday’s High Court ruling that upheld a petition by Mr Joseph Bbosa, the UPC vice president under Mr Olara Otunnu’s regime, which contended that Mr Jimmy Akena, who is also the Lira Municipality MP, was fraudulently declared party president. Following the court ruling, candidates contesting on the UPC ticket in both parliamentary and local council elections risk being disqualified.
While addressing a weekly press conference on Monday, the outgoing UPC president, Mr Olara Otunnu, said party officials are yet to sit and agree on a date for the delegates conference.
“The party institution will meet and communicate a way forward,” Mr Otunnu said.
Mr Bbosa said Mr Akena had forcefully overthrown the party leadership and imposed his rule on them contrary to the rules governing the party. “He is not party president any more since he wasn’t elected officially by party members. Therefore, Mr Otunnu remains party president until a delegates’ conference and party elections are held,” Mr Bbosa said.
Mr Bbosa told those who were elected to serve on Mr Akena’s cabinet and those who were endorsed by him for the 2016 election: “If you are endorsed by a candidate without authority, your candidature is null and void. The judge was clear, that Akena is an impostor. Therefore, every action and decisions he made as party president are null and void.”
Mr Akena told Daily Monitor on phone yesterday that he was preparing to appeal the High Court decision.
SOURCE:DAILY MONITOR:[UPC to elect new party president->http://www.monitor.co.ug/News/National/UPC-elect-new-party-president/-/688334/2998384/-/c068kv/-/index.html]
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