By Leonard Kamugisha Akida,
KAMPALA
The Electoral Commission (EC) has started hearing petitions arising from the nomination of candidates for the Local Council I (LCI) elections.
The EC chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama said the commission had by Tuesday received 30 complaints, mainly from Kampala.
Speaking during a media briefing in Kampala on Wednesday, Byabakama said hearings of the petitions had commenced at the commission headquarters in the Industrial Area and would continue until before the July 28 election for LCI chairpersons.
“Most of the complaints concern the residence of some candidates,” he said, adding that complaints from some upcountry districts are being handled by district returning officers.
Byabakama said the commission had not yet received any complaints regarding the nomination of candidates for Women Council positions, whose elections are scheduled for Thursday in more than 71,000 villages across the country.
“I want assure Ugandans that the Commission is prepared to receive, handle and resolve all complaints raised by candidates from the LCI and Women Council nomination and campaign processes,” he said.
He urged voters whose names appear in the village registers to participate peacefully in both the Women Council elections and the ongoing LCI campaigns.
The EC chairperson also warned government officials and politicians against attempting to influence the outcome of the elections.
“The people have the mandate to choose their representatives,” he said.
The commission further cautioned against violence and disorder during the elections, saying police and other security agencies had been put on alert to deal with any incidents.
Byabakama warned that villages where elections are disrupted by chaos or violence risk missing out on participation in subsequent parish-level electoral processes that require electoral college representation.
The Women Council elections will be held on July 23, while elections for LCI chairpersons are scheduled for July 28.
The EC said voting in both elections will be conducted by voters lining up behind candidates, their portraits or their agents at designated village meeting points across the country.
