Court prohibits Akena 2026 UPC ticket bid

KAMPALA - Court has prohibited Jimmy Akena from contesting for the country's 2026-2031 presidency on the Uganda People's Congress (UPC) party ticket.

The order by Justice Bernard Namanya of the Civil Division of the High Court in Kampala is dated Friday, July 18, 2025.

The judgment follows a petition by the Party presidential aspirant Denis Adim Enap, who opposed Akena’s bid.

Court ruled that Akena had served his two full terms, as per the UPC Constitution Article 14(1)3.

“An order of certiorari is hereby issued quashing the decision of UPC to nominate Jimmy James Michael Akena for the office of party president for the period of 2025 to 2030,” the court ordered.

Adding: “That an order of injunction is hereby issued, restraining UPC from further nominating Hon. Jimmy Akena as candidate for office of party president for period 2025 to 2030.”

Sticky issues

Through lawyer Joyce Tukahirwa, Enap, on June 13, filed an application for Judicial Review.

The judicial review claimed the party officials facilitated procedural impropriety by sneaking Akena's name, yet he is ineligible.

Enap insists that Akena served his two terms as party president from 2015 to 2020, then from 2020 to 2025.

The court declared that the nomination of Akena for a third term as president of the UPC is illegal, null and void.

The landmark decision follows years of internal conflicts and court battles within the UPC.

Justice Namanya noted that Akena served his first term from 2015 to 2020, even though his initial election was quashed by the High Court in 2015.

He said despite the decision, Akena continued to hold office, backed by an interim order from the Court of Appeal, and completed the full term. He was then re-elected for a second term, which ends in 2025.

The court's ruling drew precedents set in UPC versus Prof. Edward Kakonge (Civil Appeal No. 20 of 2016), a case that impacted Akena's leadership.

In that appeal, the Court noted that Akena remained party president from 2015 to 2020 due to the interim order that was granted, even though his election was quashed in 2015.

In the 2020 judgment, Justice Irene Mulyagonja characterised Akena's presidency as having continued "albeit resulting from an illegal process." This judicial finding notably influenced Justice Namanya's analysis and final decision.

The law

As things stand, Akena can contest for the presidency as an independent, provided he meets the requirements demanded by the Electoral Commission.