Reflections on forthcoming 2021 general election
Anybody who has been under the illusion that Uganda’s next general election scheduled to take place in February 2021 will be free, fair, credible and peaceful should think again after government submitted a demand for a huge amount of money, allegedly for the army to “manage 2021 elections.” Whatever that means.
According to a story published in the Saturday Monitor of January 18 titled, “Defence asks for Shs16b to manage 2021 elections,” the Ministry of Defence is seeking Shs16.2 billion to manage the 2021 general election.
The funds are part of Shs1.9 trillion of the ministry’s unfunded priorities submitted to Parliament on January 16 for the Financial Year 2020/2021. The Defence ministry’s proposed budget for FY 2020/2021 is a whopping Shs2.8 trillion.
The demand from the ministry was submitted by a powerful delegation led by the minister of State for Defence, Col (Rtd) Charles Okello Engola, whose intervention raised concern and doubts about the real motives of the team, especially when the minister failed to justify the need for the Shs16 billion requested allegedly to manage Uganda’s 2021 general election.
When MPs on the parliamentary Committee on Defence and Internal Affairs asked him to provide a breakdown of the funds requested to manage the 2021 election, the minister said: “You need security during elections, whether you belong to the National Resistance Movement (NRM) or any other party, which we have to provide you with. All we need is to convince Parliament so that we can get the funds.”
It’s laughable and disingenuous. I am told by an eyewitness that the minister failed to impress and convince MPs, including those of the ruling NRM party, that UPDF has a legitimate and useful role to play in management of the 2021 general election.
What is the mandate of UPDF?
For the information of all and sundry, UPDF’s mandate is clearly spelt out in Chapter 12 of the 1995 Constitution of Uganda and management of elections is definitely not one of the functions of the national army. Article 209 of the Constitution stipulates that the core function of UPDF is “to preserve and defend the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Uganda.”
So, why is the Ministry of Defence demanding to play a significant role in the management of the forthcoming 2021 general election? Your guess is as good as mine, but if the past is any guide, it is not because UPDF wants or intends to play a constructive and positive role.
In my opinion, the army should not be involved at all in the electoral process of Uganda, including the management of the 2021 general election. UPDF should focus its attention on securing the borders of Uganda and defending our beloved country’s independence. I am advised that adequate funds have been appropriated in the Budget for this purpose.
The role of maintaining law and order during the 2021 elections should be exclusively the duty and responsibility of Uganda police which has regrettably been infiltrated by the military. Police officers deployed to provide security and maintain law and order during general elections must be placed squarely under the direction and supervision of the Electoral Commission (EC). The EC must monitor them and ensure that police officers act impartially, responsibly and professionally in the discharge of their important duties, in accordance with Articles 211 and 212 of the Constitution.
The government of Uganda must stop using and treating UPDF like it’s a jack of all trades and master of none. UPDF was forced to take over Naads a few years ago and the agency was transformed into something called Operation Wealth Creation, which has been a disastrous failure and a total waste of public resources.
One hopes that government has learnt some basic lessons from the mistake made to abolish Naads and involve the national army in supervising a sector it has no expertise in.
The national army, which is funded by the taxpayers of Uganda, must not be turned into a personal or partisan Force whose primary role is to guarantee survival of a corrupt, decadent and increasingly unpopular regime.
Mr Acemah is a political scientist and retired career diplomat.
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