Unregulated campaign spending has ruined political field - report

A person aspiring to be a Member of Parliament needs in excess of Shs500m to contest in the forthcoming 2021 General Election, a study on campaign financing, indicates

What you need to know:

  • Democratic Party president Norbert Mao, who was one of the panellists, said people contribute money as a way of serving their interests because villagers are not interested in the political economy but instead they focus on what you have for them.

A person aspiring to be a Member of Parliament needs in excess of Shs500m to contest in the forthcoming 2021 General Election, a study on campaign financing, indicates.

Researchers from the Alliance for Finance Monitoring (ACFIM), a consortium of civil society organisations monitoring the expenditure by political parties, and candidates during campaigns, found out that election campaign spending has been growing exponentially since 1996, when the country conducted the first election under the current Constitution. The study shows the impact of campaign spending on electoral participants over the previous electoral cycles of 2006, 2011 and 2016. The data was collected from 428 former political candidates in 15 lower local governments which include sub-counties, municipalities and town councils.

While releasing the findings in Kampala on Friday, Mr Eddie Kayinda, the lead researcher, said Arua, Hoima, Iganga, Mbarara and Kamwenge districts, show that commercialised politics by both the voters and politicians has resulted in collapsed families, public services, bruised candidates, collapsed businesses, inefficient public services, death and jail sentences for some people.

Researchers documented several cases of politicians that have been financially bruised as a result of campaign spending in a country where electoral processes have been commercialised.
“The report states that there is a prevailing general perception in Uganda today that political means wealth, the men and women who offer themselves for elections at different electoral levels believe that being elected as a political leader is a guarantee that ‘things will’ come. From 2015 pre-campaign period, it became increasingly clear that the primary method for controlling the electoral process and determining electoral outcome, especially in rural areas, was through use of money. Campaign spending in Uganda begins immediately an election end,” the report reads in part.

The report further indicates that majority of respondents about 79 per cent, believe money influenced voter decisions and subsequent outcome of the elections. During campaigns, political parties and candidates spend money on legitimate and illegitimate electoral activities.
“Unregulated campaign spending opens doors for disproportionate expenditure by and on behalf of political parties or candidates who are very well resourced, which in effect distorts the fairness of election campaign at all levels of election in Uganda, not least village council elections,” the report further reads in part.

The civil society organisations recommended the enactment of standalone elections campaign finance legislation in accordance with good practices for mandatory public disclosure requirements contribution limits, spending limits and reporting on pre campaign.
To also tighten provision on vote buying to bar from contesting for at least five years political leaders, whose elections are nullified in courts of law even if in the nullification is as a result of a civil suit.
Democratic Party president Norbert Mao, who was one of the panellists, said people contribute money as a way of serving their interests because villagers are not interested in the political economy but instead they focus on what you have for them.