Norma Susan Otai, the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) aspirant for the Bukedea Woman MP seat, has taken the Electoral Commission (EC) and Speaker of Parliament, Annet Anita Among, to court over what she calls deliberate obstruction of her candidature.
Otai says her trouble started on 23 October when she attempted to access the nomination centre in Bukedea but was stopped by EC officials and security personnel. She argues that this happened while unresolved questions about her eligibility were still pending, forcing her to seek legal redress.
In a letter dated 21 November 2025, filed through her lawyers at M/S Escala Associated Advocates, Otai accuses the EC of refusing to make a timely decision on her petition. She describes the delay as “illegal, irrational, and unreasonable,” insisting that the Commission is breaching its legal duty.
She wants the courts to compel the EC to issue an immediate ruling and to halt the gazetting of any Bukedea Woman MP candidate until her complaint is decided. According to her, the EC’s inaction undermines the rule of law and denies candidates fair time to campaign and engage with voters.
Otai has also accused Speaker Anita Among of interfering in electoral processes in ways she believes compromise the credibility of the race.
Although the EC scheduled a hearing for 4 November 2025 and promised a ruling within a week, Otai says she has received no communication to date — a delay she views as evidence of inefficiency and abuse of authority.
Her case unfolds alongside another legal challenge filed by Zipporah Akol, who is questioning the eligibility of Otai and two other aspirants — independent candidate Hellen Akol Odeke and NUP’s Mercy Marion Alupo — for allegedly not being registered voters in their respective parishes.
Filed as Cause No. 198 of 2025, Akol’s suit references rulings from local Parish Tribunals recommending that the aspirants be removed from the voters’ roll. Otai is accused of not being a registered voter in Kopeta Parish, while Odeke and Alupo face similar accusations in Malera and Kotolut parishes.
The EC, also listed as a respondent, submitted an affidavit stating that it had reviewed the tribunal decisions and confirmed that the bodies acted within their authority — prompting the removal of all three aspirants from the National Voters Register.
The matter is now before the courts, where Justice Simon Peter Kinobe was expected to deliver a ruling on 27 October 2025. Otai claims this ruling has not been delivered, leaving the case in limbo.
