Mao Seeks Financial Help To Defend His Laro-Pece Seat In Court

Norbert Mao, the Minister of Justice and Constitutional affairs plays the drum during his home welcoming celebration at Kaunda parade ground in Gulu City on July 22 2023. URN Photo

The Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs and Member of Parliament-elect for Pece-Laroo Division in Gulu City, Norbert Mao, has formally responded to an election petition challenging his victory.

The petition was filed by Tony Kitara, a former candidate who contested on the NRM ticket in the Laroo-Pece Division parliamentary race.

Kitara lodged the petition at the High Court in Gulu City on April 1, 2026, contesting the outcome of the January 15 election in which the Electoral Commission declared Mao the winner. Kitara finished third in the race with 2,867 votes against Mao’s 7,359.

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Through his lawyers Caleb Alaka and Evans Ochieng, Kitara had applied for extra time to serve Mao after several attempts to deliver the petition failed.

In a ruling delivered on April 20, High Court Resident Judge Philip Odoki granted the application, extending the statutory time for service and authorizing substitute service through the Daily Monitor newspaper.

Following this ruling, it’s understood that Mao, through his legal team led by Francis Gimara, filed his defense on April 21. The court had also directed that Mao could obtain a full copy of the petition from the court registry. Meanwhile, the Electoral Commission filed its response on April 22.

Gimara confirmed that Mao had responded to the petition but declined to provide details.

“The petition has been received and replied to,” Gimara told URN on Saturday.

It’s also understood by this publication that all the election petition files from Kitara, Mao, and the Electoral Commission will be forwarded to the Principal Judge, who will subsequently assign a judge to handle the case before a date is fixed for mention.

Curiously, on April 30, Mao took to his official X account to appeal for financial support to fund his legal defence. He called on his friends to contribute through bank and mobile money accounts managed by “Friends of Mao Club Ltd.”

“One war, many fronts.” Mao posted. “No retreat, no surrender! While we have assembled the troops to fight the proxy election petition, we won’t be distracted. We shall hit the real snake on the head. To do that, we need support.”He did not specify “the snake” by name.

The fundraising appeal has raised questions about why the minister who is also President General of the Democratic Party is seeking public contributions.

When asked about the fundraising drive, Gimara declined to comment, stating that his role is limited to legal representation.

“Please speak to him, I have nothing to do with that,” he said. “My duty is to represent him in court.”

George Aligec, who was Mao’s campaign manager in the Laroo-Pece Division race, suggested that “financial constraints” may have prompted the appeal.

“Never judge a book by its cover,” Aligec said. “You may assume someone has money when they don’t, or the money they have is meant for other purposes.”

He added that Mao may not have anticipated the costs of defending an election petition following the January 15 polls, which could explain the call for support. Aligec also noted that campaign expenses can be significant, hinting that Mao could still be managing debts from the polls, though he did not provide specifics.

On whether Mao could have opted to borrow instead, Aligec suggested he may have already relied on such options during the campaign and might find it difficult to return to the same sources.

However, Simon Opoka, one of the candidates in the Pece-Laroo Division parliamentary race and a former Democratic Party member who later crossed to UPC, dismissed the fundraising drive as a calculated political move.

Opoka, a close ally of Mao for several years who also served as the DP National Vice Chairperson described the fundraising appeal as a political game and public relations strategy aimed at generating sympathy from the public.

Opoka said by any standard, Mao as a cabinet Minister earns a substantial income which would enable him fund the election petition case.

“Honourable Norbert Mao is very good at public relations, and this is part of it,” sad Opoka. “In politics, you have to sometimes present yourself as humble, poor, or unfairly treated in order to gain sympathy.”

He added that the “Friends of Mao” structure is not new, claiming it has existed since around 2010 to mobilize campaign resources.

He also questioned the timing and intent of the fundraising drive, suggesting it could be aimed at influencing public opinion and the broader perception of the ongoing court process.

“This is about shaping how he is perceived going into the court case,” OPoka continued. “Mao is managing public opinion projecting himself as a victim.”

Efforts to obtain a comment from Mao on the fundraising initiative were unsuccessful, as he did not respond to repeated calls over the weekend.

Mao has also expressed interest in contesting for the position of Speaker of Parliament, currently held by Anita Annet Among, a move that has stirred debate among some NRM officials.