Gen Muntu’s ANT party rejects EC guidelines
Maj Gen Mugisha Muntu, ANT party’s presidential flag bearer
What you need to know:
- “I want to thank ANT for creating this space for us to be able to contribute to nation building. Overtime, I realised that the situation is getting worse, there are no values, people just do whatever comes to their head and there is this saying that politics is a dirty game” ~ Sarah Kiyingi
- “There are many Ugandans out there who are looking at values and not numbers, I would like to call them. It is our duty, it is our responsibility. The country is bleeding. Positions will be there even when we have a clean party in power...”~ Gen Mugisha Muntu
The Alliance for National Transformation (ANT) has raised objections to guidelines issued by the Electoral Commission (EC) ahead of the party’s national delegates conference.
Whereas the party intends to host about 600 delegates on August 6, the electoral body maintains numbers should not exceed 50.
The party’s spokesperson, Mr Wilberforce Seryazi, said: “We suggested that the EC rather comes up with the standard operating procedures (SoPs) in terms of space, we can have a football field with 1,000 people but there is enough space and other SoPs.”
Mr Seryazi was yesterday addressing a press conference at ANT headquarters in Kampala.
He also said during a meeting with party officials and officials from the EC on Tuesday, the party put across a number of proposals.
He said the EC is still consulting on whether or not to adopt the recommendations. Maj Gen Mugisha Muntu, the party’s presidential flag bearer, is also concerned about the period of time given to presidential candidates to traverse the country for campaigns.
Mr Seryazi argued that whereas Members of Parliament are given four months to campaign, it is unfair that the President who holds more mandate is given only three months.
As a result, the ANT has proposed to the EC to bring forward the nomination dates for presidential candidates to allow them enough time to go around the country. They also want the electoral body to accept town hall meetings as opposed to a virtual campaign.
Restrictions on campaigns, the ANT believes, should be relaxed to allow a fair electoral process.
Meanwhile, Ms Alice Alaso, the party’s deputy national coordinator for Finance and Administration, who is also holding fort for the national coordinator, said the party is currently undertaking a procurement process for a venue to be used.
She also presented what she said was the comprehensive roadmap for the party ahead of the delegates’ conference and national elections.
“As we are handling all this, we want our candidates to know that there is an ongoing process of validation of academic documents. By the time they come for nominations for the internal party processes, they should be having that certificate of validation,” she said.
The party also unveiled former minister of State for Internal Affairs, Ms Sarah Kiyingi and Aisha Nabasirye, the deputy speaker for Makindye Division.
Ms Kiyingi, a former MP in the NRC is one of Museveni’s former allies who faced him and opposed amendments to the Constitution.
Speaking at the function, the ANT president flag bearer, Gen Muntu, said he is delighted to have principled members joining a party he founded a year ago.
