The High Court in Kampala has directed that the original 2004 Constitution of the National Unity Platform (NUP), as registered with the Electoral Commission, be preserved pending the outcome of a major civil suit challenging the party’s current leadership and registration status.
The ruling, issued on July 1, 2025, by the Civil Division of the High Court, stems from a case filed by five individuals Ssimbiwa Paul Kagombe, Nkonge Moses Kibalama, Luyinda Moses, Omondi Delwilbert, and Kasirye Joseph Emmanuel, who are seeking legal clarity over the leadership and foundational documents of NUP.
The respondents in the case include NUP as a political party, its president Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu (commonly known as Bobi Wine), senior party leaders David Lewis Rubongoya, Joel Ssenyonyi, Fred Nanzi Ssentamu, Katana Benjamin, and the Electoral Commission.
Presiding over the matter, Justice Simon Peter M. Kinobe ordered the status quo of the party’s founding Constitution initially filed with the Electoral Commission in 2004, be maintained and not altered until the main civil suit is fully resolved.
The decision was made in the presence of Mr. Deus Byamugisha, representing the applicants, and Mr. Jonathan Elotu, counsel for the first six respondents. The Electoral Commission, named as the seventh respondent, was not represented during the proceedings.
The order was officially recorded and signed by Court Registrar Kintu Simon Zirintusa.
The ruling is seen as a significant development in the prolonged dispute over the legitimacy of NUP’s current leadership and transformation from its earlier identity as the National Unity Reconciliation and Development Party (NURP).
