Candidates sign anti-bribery agreement

Jinja.

Candidates vying for the Kagoma Constituency parliamentary seat have signed an agreement to run a decent campaign.
The four candidates, including Mr Alex Brandon Kintu (Independent), Mr Moses Walyomu ( NRM), Mr Muhammed Bidondole (Independent) and Mr Timothy Batuwa Lusala (FDC), signed to particularly run a campaign that is devoid of voter bribery.
The Kagoma parliamentary seat fell vacant after the Court of Appeal nullified the result of the election following an appeal by Mr Kintu who was one of the contenders in the 2016 parliamentary race.

Appeal decision
Mr Kintu stood as an independent but lost to Mr Walyomu. He then filed an election petition in court detailing election fraud manifested in the form of particularly voter bribery, something he said unjustly swung the result in favour of his rival.
The Court of Appeal agreed with his argument and in early March, a verdict nullifying the election was declared, resulting into the forthcoming by-election.
To cure the repeat of what mainly led to the nullification of the earlier results, NGOs such as the Alliance for Finance Monitoring (ACFIM) and First African Bicycle Organisation (FABIO) have teamed up to push for fair play during the Kagoma by-election campaigns.
In an effort to do that, the aforementioned NGOs, whose agenda is good governance and fair play, have had all the nominated candidates make a public pledge and sign an agreement committing to free and fair election.
The four candidates signed the agreement last week in Jinja during a harmonising meeting chaired by the Jinja District returning officer, Mr Anthony Ambrose Mwaita.
The director of FABIO, Ms Katesi Nagisa, said so far, 65 activists have been deployed in at least five sub-counties, comprising 15 parishes with nearly 120 villages to move from door to door telling the voters not to sell their votes.
According to the representative of ACIFIM, Mr Henry Mugizi, selling and buying votes normally undermines the quality of services delivered, let alone rendering the whole electoral processes a shame.
In his remarks, Mr Mwaita urged the candidates to strictly follow electoral rules and not breach the public pact they have just entered; saying going back on their promises and breaking of any rules will have dire consequences.
He said as the representative of the electoral prefect, he will ensure the election is free and fair.