The High Court in Jinja has dismissed an election petition filed by Peter Patrick Ochieng challenging the election of Stephen Mayende Dede.

Ochieng contends that right from the election campaigns to polling day his supporters and agents were arrested, intimidated and tortured.

He also alleges that underage and unregistered persons were allowed to vote.  Ochieng sued Dede together with the Electoral Commission citing bribery, intimidation of his supporters and favouritism.

The petitioner had wanted court to nullify the election of Mayende and order fresh elections because the malpractices affected the result in a substantial manner.

Ochieng said the Electoral Commission connived with Mayende and failed to control the malpractices.

Justice Monica Mugenyi has said in the ruling that much as there was non-compliance of electoral laws, it didn’t affect the results in a substantial manner.

She said allegations of malpractices were mere hearsay and there was no proof that they were committed with Mayende’s knowledge.

Court has ordered the petitioner to meet three quarters of the costs of the suit.

Ochieng is the former area MP.

Dede polled 18,385 votes while Ochieng got 16,754 votes.

Ochieng lost to Dede in the National Resistance Movement (NRM) primaries and decided to contest as an independent and lost in the general elections.