Phiona Nyamutoro is set to be declared elected unopposed as the Woman Member of Parliament for Nebbi District, after the Electoral Commission (EC) nullified the nomination of National Unity Platform (NUP) candidate Mercy Rebecca Abedican.
The ruling, signed by EC Chairperson Justice Simon Mugenyi Byabakama on November 13, 2025, followed a petition filed by Godfrey Ongiera and Jimmy Bediic.
They claimed that Abedican had presented their particulars and forged their signatures on her nomination forms, despite neither supporting her candidacy.
During the EC hearing, Ongiera and Bediic denied endorsing Abedican.
Ongiera further demonstrated that he is a member of the National Resistance Movement (NRM) and therefore could not have supported a candidate sponsored by the NUP.
Abedican failed to provide satisfactory evidence to counter these claims.
Justice Byabakama noted that Abedican’s nomination did not meet the requirements under Section 28(1)(c) of the Parliamentary Elections Act, Cap. 177.
Consequently, in its November 7, 2025 meeting (MIN. COMM 040/2025), the EC resolved that Abedican was not eligible to contest the Woman MP seat for Nebbi District.
Nyamutoro had earlier won the NRM primaries in July, defeating incumbent Agnes Acibu, leaving Abedican as her only remaining challenger in the general election.
Following the EC ruling, the Returning Officer’s earlier decision nominating Abedican was reversed, and Nyamutoro was officially declared elected unopposed.
The EC is set to formally declare Nyamutoro as the Woman Member of Parliament for Nebbi District on November 17, 2025.
