Museveni names special team for LC elections

KAMPALA. As candidates for the Local Council elections make final campaigns on Monday, President Museveni, the National Resistance Movement (NRM) chairman, has named a team tasked to steer the party to victory.
The President explained that an LCI office is a cornerstone of government planning and mobilisation for development and stability.
“Due to pockets of insecurity and criminality, land wrangles and incitement by detrimental actors backed by politicians, everything must be done to have the correct people in charge of the village units,” Mr Museveni said in a statement at the weekend.
According to Mr Faruk Kirunda, the spokesperson in the office of the NRM national chairman, a special team to co-ordinate campaigns for the July 10 LCI elections comprises national and regional coordinators and is headed by Ms Milly Babirye Babalanda, a senior presidential adviser.
The regional coordinators include Mr Dan Mulalu, who will be in charge of (Teso); Mr Milton Odongo (Lira, Lango), Ms Irene Atek (Acholi), Mr Francis Akule (West Nile), Mr Imran Tumusiime (Bunyoro) and Mr Yakub Gowon Katarikawe (Tooro).
Others are Kamara John Aryasa (Rwenzori); Mr Abbey Bizimana (Kigezi), Martha Asiimwe (Ankole), Mr Nyombi Thembo, (North Buganda) and Mr Sulaiman Madada, (South Buganda), Mr Sulaiman Walusimbi (Kampala), Mr Majid Dhikussoka (Busoga), Lt (rtd) Saleh Kamba (Bukedi), Mr Ahmed Washaki (Bugisu), Mr Simon Peter Kokoi, (Karamoja), Mr Abdi Kikosi Kimasweti (Sebei).
Mr Kirunda said the coordinators will rally support for NRM candidates countrywide and will support teams from the secretariat in mobilisation and ensuring that the party garners a decisive win.
He said the party scored an absolute majority in the recent Women Council elections, especially in Mukono, Kampala, Wakiso and Masaka districts. Asked what percentage they expect to get in the elections, Mr Kirunda said they are targeting 98 per cent victory.

Why LC elections are important
Last week, the minister for Local Government, Mr Tom Butime, underscored the importance of LC elections and urged people to elect their new leaders.
“Research has established that about 80 per cent of our citizens access justice through the informal court systems because they are user friendly in terms of procedure, language, financial resources, proximity and speedy discharge of disputes,” he said during a press briefing in Kampala.
Mr Ivan Kule, an aspirant for Kinawataka Zone, Kampala, said the LCI office is the most important political position in the country.
“When the President visits any place, the LCI chairperson has to welcome and receive him officially. That is why we are in high gear for the seat,” Mr Kule said.
That partly explains why in Oyam District, a number of teachers abandoned classrooms to contest for LCI elections.
The district education officer, Ms Janet Achol, directed head teachers to compile the names of teachers who had been nominated to contest for the LCI elections without resigning their jobs.
“I am directing the head-teachers to compile the list of teachers from their schools who are contesting in the LCI and II elections without resigning so that we can know what disciplinary action to take against them because they should resign first. It’s against the law for them to abandon pupils in classes to engage in politics,” Ms Achol told Daily Monitor by telephone last Thursday.
The Electoral Commission had earlier cleared civil servants interested in contesting in the LC elections. However, in a press statement on June 29, EC chairman Justice Simon Byabakama, asked civil servants to resign before seeking nomination.
“The Electoral Commission wishes to clarify that the right of Public Officers to contest in LCI and LCII elections without resigning their offices was removed by Section 1 of the Local Government (Amendments) Act (No.2) 2006, which deleted Section 116(6) (b) thereof,” he stated.

Statistics
Districts: 122
Sub-counties: 1,671
Polling stations: 28,749
Total voters: 17,073,493
Constituencies: 296
Parishes: 8,386
Villages: 60,800