Don’t interfere with EC’s work, Byabakama tells security
Justice Simon Byabakama addresses the media at the Electoral Commission headquarters in Kampala yesterday. PHOTO/IBRAHIM KAVUMA
What you need to know:
There have been several complaints raised by concerned members of the public about the security organs involvement in electoral processes
The chairman of the Electoral Commission, Justice Simon Byabakama, has urged all stakeholders—especially security agencies—to “stay in their lanes” . Responding to concerns about the army’s continued involvement in the electoral process, Justice Byabakama said it was wrong for security forces to overstep their role. He compared it to an invited guest who takes over the responsibilities of the head of the household, saying such interference must stop. “Like what happened in Kawempe (North by-election), that was uncalled for.
Were those people even Ugandans? Because if they were Ugandans, they would have followed the law. These are some of the incidents that we witness, where the security comes in [to boost] security and then end up taking over our work as the managers of elections. This has to stop,” Justice Byabakama said while addressing the media at the EC headquarters yesterday.
He added: “We are talking to these people, we have been talking to the police in different stations. We are now moving to the UPDF offices too, such that we can help them understand what we are doing and where their role ends. The Constitution also allows the police to invite any other sister agencies in case they feel overpowered, and that is at their discretion.” These remarks follow similar concerns raised by the Minister of Internal Affairs, Gen Kahinda Otafiire, who on Tuesday told a stakeholders’ quarterly dialogue that there is no need for the army to be involved in electoral matters. When asked to comment on the issue, Defence spokesperson Brig Felix Kulayigye said this media house is banned from covering the Ministry of Defence.
“Young man, the last time I checked, you people (Nation Media Group) had been banned from covering us,” he said shortly before he hung up on the phone. Brig Kulayigye did not clarify whether there was any official communication sent to the media house regarding the reported ban from covering government or security-related events. However, there have been multiple incidents where journalists from Nation Media Group (NMG) were blocked from covering events attended by President Museveni. Meanwhile Police spokesperson Kituuma Rusoke when contacted yesterday said: “Police preparations for the elections are in high gear. We know that we have to secure and maintain law and order.” He added: “Our desire is not to see any violence, but that is only if the various players remain calm and don’t become antagonistic.
We shall play our role as the law-enforcing agency, and we hope that everyone else does the same.” Over the years, several election stakeholders have raised concerns about military interference in the polling process, urging the government to implement electoral reforms to ensure free and fair elections in the country. According to Section 41, subsections 2 and 3 of the Parliamentary Elections Act of 2005, a returning officer is allowed to appoint at least two constables to maintain law and order at a polling station during an election. “(2) A presiding officer other than a presiding officer for a polling station located in an urban area may, in the absence of a police officer appoint at least one person present and resident within the area of the polling station as an election constable to maintain order at the polling station throughout polling day where the presiding officer finds the services of an election constable to be essential,” the Act reads.
It adds: “(3)A presiding officer may only appoint a person other than a police officer to be an election constable under subsection (2) when there is actual or threatened disorder or when it is likely that a larger number of voters will seek to vote at the same time.” In the 2016 court ruling in the case of former presidential candidate Amama Mbabazi versus President Museveni, a panel of nine judges referred to election observer reports from the previous polls, noting that several irregularities and malpractices had been identified. The court also acknowledged the recommendations made in those reports. “Uganda’s legal framework limits the foundation for conducting credible elections.
These limitations prompted civil society to produce the Citizens’ Compact on Free and Fair Elections, which includes recommendations for 15 legal reform: overhauling the Electoral Commission to ensure independence and impartiality; reforming the demarcation of electoral boundaries; ensuring recruitment of polling officials is done in a transparently, competitively and based on merit; and the establishment of an independent Judiciary to adjudicate on electoral disputes impartially. These recommendations were not taken up for the 2016 elections,” the team of judges stated.
Nearly a decade later, similar issues continue to arise in various elections. Just three months ago, during the Kawempe North by-election, individuals in army uniforms were seen at polling stations assaulting voters and journalists. As a result, several media houses pulled their reporters from the field for safety reasons.
Election observation and civic education
Several stakeholders also criticised the Electoral Commission for what they described as a deliberate delay in accrediting election observers and civic educators, saying it undermines efforts to ensure a free and transparent election. Ms Sarah Bireete, executive director of the Centre for Constitutional Governance, said: “This is an intentional move to keep us away from our mandated duties because some NGOs applied for accreditation eight months ago to support voter education and long-term observation. But to date, the Electoral Commission hasn’t responded.”
Section 16, subsections (1, 2 and 3) of the Electoral Commissions Act states: “The commission may at any election accredit any individual, group or institution to act as an election observer.
(2) The commission shall issue guidelines to observers or other persons, groups or institutions involved in the electoral process.
“(3) Without prejudice to the general effect of subsection
(2), guidelines issued under that subsection may specify the objectives of the steps to be taken under the accreditation granted under subsection (1).”
Mr Byabakama said the Electoral Commission is still reviewing the applications from organisations that applied to conduct civic education and election observation, and will publish the list of those that qualify once the vetting process is complete. However, Ms Bireete argued that the process should have been concluded earlier, noting that elections have already begun and both voter education and election observation are urgently needed.
In the last elections, the United States was compelled to cancel its observation of Uganda's presidential polls because most of its accreditation requests were denied. The European Union, during the same elections, also indicated that a coalition representing hundreds of Ugandan civil society organisations had filed 1,900 accreditation requests, but only 10 had been granted. They later released a statement indicating that the electoral process had been seriously tarnished by the excessive use of force and its offer to deploy a small team of electoral experts was not taken up.
Elections
Voting for Special Interest Groups village committees commenced on Monday and will end today. According to the Electoral Commission, the polling period for presidential, parliamentary, and local government councils (city/district; municipality/city division; and sub-county, town, municipal division), including special interest groups representatives, will be held between January 12 and February 9, 2026.
