The role of the Electoral Commission in election
administration
Monthly Research Report
January, 2006
By
Rwengabo Sabastiano
Introduction
In January 2006, the Electoral Commission (EC) managed campaigns for
presidential, parliamentary and district women representative contestants. It also
recruited ADRs / District Complaints’ Desk and Systems Officers to handle
complaints at district level. Nominations for various LC officials were also finalised.
Most electoral offences committed by members of the public have been being handled
by the police’s Election Offences Squad and these included defacing posters. No
compaints of intimidation were received by the EC by Januray 31, 2006.
General Duties
These comprised the handling of operations; delivery of materials for nominations;
invitation and handlingof interests from organisations/individuals intending to observe
the forthcoming elections; issuance of symbols for independent Candidates who failed
to submit their symbols; and calling upon voters who had registered more than once to
rectify their registration status or face legal action; plus the finalisation of the re-
organisation of the polling stations. 2,480 new stations were created.
Accreditation
The EC invited written expressions of interest from organisations / individuals who
wished to observe presidential, parliamentary and district women elections. In order to
be accredited as observers organisations / individuals are required to:
- Demonstrate a track record of credibility
- Demonstrate neutrality in the elections
- Illustrate that governance is a key aspect of their activities
- Be able to submit timely written observation reports
- Be able to meet their upkeep expenses
- Be able to comply with guidelines to be issued by the EC.
When seen to fulfil the above requirements, observers would be provided with written
clearance, relevant information and identification tags for purposes of observing the
elections. Applications had to be submitted not later than January 23, 2006 (Daily
Monitor, Monday, January 16, 2006).
Campaign symbols
Independent candidates were required to submit symbols which they would use in
their campaigns. Those who failed were assigned symbols from which to choose.
These included: a chair, a ball, a bicycle, a table, a clock, a radio, a pot, a saucepan
and a cup. Candidates are required to choose their symbols and communicate to their
electorate.
Clean-up of voters’ registry
The EC published in the national press a list of persons who had registered more than
once (The New Vision, December 22, 2005; Friday, January 6, 2006). It reminded and
warned the public that multiple registrations were illegal; and appealed to persons
who had registered more than once to use the on-going display exercise which ended
on January 17, 2006, to regularize their registration status. Offenders would be
prosecuted.
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New polling stations
The EC announced that 2,480 new polling stations had been created following the
reorganisation exercise conducted in August 2005 resulting into splitting, renaming,
merging and relocation of new stations. This triggered a wave of protests from
politicians suggesting that the new stations may be a government ploy to rig the polls.
Polling stations have increased from 17308 to 19788 countrywide. An EC
announcement of August 26, 2005 indicated that the reorganisation would take place.
(Daily Monitor Monday, January 16, 2006). In response to criticism, EC provided
soft-copies of all polling stations and voters register to political parties. However, the
new stations had not been communicated to voters by January 15, 2006. (See August,
2005 report on reorganisation of polling stations).
Recruitment of District Complaints Desk and Systems Officers
On November, 8, 2005, the Human Resource and Finance consultancy firm - UNISIS
–announced positions of: National Inter-party Liaison Officer and National
Complaints Desk and Systems Officer, plus 69 positions of ADR / District
Complaints Desk and System Officers, tenable with the Electoral Commission. These
were to work for a non-renewable contract of six months. Their recruitment and
placement were to be funded by Donor Democracy and Governance Group (DDG) -
Election Monitoring Unit (Daily Monitor, Tuesday, November 08, 2005). The
applicants were screened through a series of interviews (written and oral) by UNISIS.
They were taken for an induction training workshop at Imperial Botanical Beach
Hotel - Entebbe 3rd -17th January, 2006. They were sent to report to their duty stations
on January 27, 2006.
These officers are under the Legal Department of EC. However, their contracts were
reduced to end on May 3, 2006. The duties and responsibilities of these temporary
recruits are to:
- Receive, analyse and provide the District Registrar and National
Complaints Desk and System Officer with up-to-date information
and analyses of complaints related to the electoral process in the
district.
- Collect and provide up-to-date information and analyses on the status
of complaints and their resolution in the district.
- Document complaints with details of where, by whom and when
complaints are made in the district.
- Detail complaints with the legal basis of the complaints in the
district.
- Document whom complaints have been referred to in the district for
further action.
- Ascertain and document the result of any investigations, mediations
and adjudications in the district.
- Advise the District Registrar on any action to be levied and / or
levied for any electoral offence.
- Draft responses to complaints received in the district as appropriate
in a timely manner.
- Act as convener/secretary to constituency and district peace
committees as directed by the supervisor.
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- Provide minutes for the above meetings; and perform other duties as
assigned from time to time.
The intention is that with these officers, complaints will be attended to, that the
number of complaints will be reduced in the district, and thereby facilitate a peaceful
election season. Successful candidates must have a Bachelor’s Degree in Law, Mass
Communication or Social sciences (with a bias in Public Administration). All the 69
officials have already been assigned districts, and two deployed at the Headquarters.
Nominations
The nominations of presidential candidates on December 14 and 15, 2005; and Local
Council election candidates, December 27-31, 2005, parliamentary candidates were
nominated on January 12 and 13, 2006 (see December, 2005 report on nominations).
One interesting aspect is that the EC has been stringent on the legal requirements for
nominations (refer to Electoral Commission Act, 1997 as amended; Local
Government Act, 1997 as amended; Presidential Elections Act, 2005; PPOA, 2005;
Parliamentary Elections Act, 2005; and nomination guidelines for legal requirements).
Failure to comply with these requirements led to disqualifications as the following
selected examples show:
1. Luuka County MP (Iganga District) Hon. John Bulamu was disqualified on
Friday, January 13, 2006 over academic papers. He had got a Degree in
Medicine from Russia in 1973, but had not got clearance from NCHE * .
2. Solomon Nabeeta sat his A’Level from Nairobi – Kenya but failed to get a
clearance letter from NCHE. The district returning officer, Mr. Godfrey
Ssempima was not convinced by any of the above. (Sunday Monitor, January
15, 2006).
3. Hon. Ken Lukyamuzi flouted sections of the leadership code when he refused /
failed to declare his wealth. The Inspector-General of Government, Ms. Faith
Mwondha wrote to the speaker of Parliament and Clerk to Parliament
informing them of Hon. Lukyamuzi’s ceasure to be an MP effective December
5, 2005. (See Articles 230, 231 and 232 of the Constitution). The January 11,
2006 letter elaborated instances when Lukyamuzi expressed failure to comply
with the law. In turn, the EC could not nominate him for Mp Lubaga South
Constituency. Hon Lukyamuzi sought a court order seeking the extension of
nominations for his constituency for seven days. He jointly sued Clerk to and
Speaker of, Parliament, Mr. Aeneas Tandekwire and Rt Hon. Edward
Ssekandi, the EC plus the IGG. He also sought compensation worth Shs. 100
million for psychological stress (See Sunday Vision and Sunday Monitor,
January 15, 2006).
4. Following petitions to EC, the commission sought police assistance to help
investigate four candidates over allegations of using forged documents, and
other electoral malpractices. These were: Alhajji Abdul Nadduli - chairman
LC 5- Luwero district; Christopher Kigozi Ssempala (Nakaseke LC5); Ahmed
Kawoya (Kamuli LC5); and Richard Mafabi (Sironko LC5). Mafabi’s issue
was over failure to retire from the Judiciary before joining (partisan) politics
*
National council for high Education is the body required to provide clearance on any qualification not
given by UNEB to ascertain its equivalence to A’Level.
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as required by the law. Copies of the 4 candidates’ academic documents were
availed to CID (see The New Vision, January 05, 2006 and Tuesday January
10, 2006).
5. Luwero district LC5 aspirant, Alhajji Abdul Nadduli (also the incumbent) was
later nullified after finding that he used forged documents to acquire a degree
from a University. Christopher Chekrui Senghor was cleared as a dully
nominated LC5 candidate for Kapchrwa district after finding that he had the
required academic documents (Daily Monitor, Saturday, January 21, 2006 and
January 6, 2006; For a list of Nominated MPs, see Daily Monitor, Monday,
January 16, 2006).
EC’s preparedness for the 2006 multiparty elections exercise
The Secretary to EC Mr. Sam Rwakoojo contended that the forthcoming elections will
be free and fair and that the EC is independent by highlighting the following points:
• The nomination of Kiiza Byesigye was based on Presidential Elections Act,
2005 which did not require someone to be there personally 1 .
• Government has been timely in terms of funding arrangements. He revealed
that of the Ushs. 64 billion budgeted for, the EC has received shs. 20 billion.
In October 2005, it was agreed that government gives EC Shs. 10 billion but
government gave shs.10.4 billion; and in November/December 2005, shs.5.9
billion was disbursed as had been agreed upon.
• The EC implements the law by nominating independent candidates alongside
party candidates. Whether parties (like NRM-O) refuse their members from
contesting as independents is a party matter, and EC has never received
complaints to that effect.
• There are no major problems with the voters’ register except cases of missing
photographs. The register was out on display and voters had a chance to
regularise their status. A parish Tribunal is legally empowered to handle
problems of deletion from the register and other registration complaints.
Unless forms making changes are signed by all the members of the tribunal,
the changes in the register can not be effected. Everyone whose name appears
in the register will be able to vote 2 .
• The money EC gives the candidates is supportive and not meant to cover the
whole campaign process.
• The EC is recruiting its own Returning Officers. While some Chief
Administrative Officers (CAOs) were R.O.s, now the commission has started
appointing its own staff in the district. (The New Vision, January 5, 2006).
Challenges to the EC
The FDC presidential candidate, Rtd. Col. Dr. Kiiza Besigye, however, argued that
there are pertinent issues the EC must address in the 2006 electoral process. These
include:
• Location of polling stations in areas inaccessible to the public,
and the creation of illegal polling stations.
• Civic education about the polling procedure
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Petitions have been submitted trying to challenge Besigye’s Candidature.
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But she / he whose name does not appear in the register, though having a voters’ card, will not vote
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• Involvement of the army and other security agencies other than
police in election monitoring.
• The role of the police in the polling process
• The definition of an eligible voter
• Equal access/coverage in government media among
parties/candidates during campaigns
• Electoral offences, including bribing of voters to surrender their
voters’ identification cards, and voting for able-bodied persons
on polling day
• Finalisation and publication of the National Voters’ Register, and
(The Daily Monitor, Friday January 20, 2006).
Other issues concerning electoral administration referred to in the
Uganda press January 2006:
ISO 3 official, Mr. Habib Nsamba was arrested and jailed for defacing Dr. Besigye
(FDC) and Mr. Ssebana’s (DP) campaign posters in Mateete trading centre-
Ssembabule District (Daily Monitor, Friday, January, 20, 2006)
FDC demanded that EC declares voters and their particulars at each polling station
countrywide before voting day. FDC Envoy Betty Kamya displayed eigth voter cards
to the press, saying that, they had been bought from voters in Kawempe Division-
Kampala, and appealed to EC to curb the card-buying exercise.
DP’s John Sebana Kizito criticised the EC for setting the voting date for L.C.5
chairpersons, to five days after presidential elections, arguing that it would scare away
demoralised voters. (The New Vision, Tuesday, January 10, 2006).
Makarere University students were remanded to Luzira for defacing NRM’s Yoweri
Museven’s posters in Kireka - Kampala and were arrested by Election Offences
Squad on December 22, 2005. (The New Vision, Friday, January 6, 2006).
EC allowed individual campaigns for mayors and councillors as well as joint
campaigns for mayors and councillors belonging to the same party. (The New Vision,
Monday January 9, 2006).
Dr. Nkamulayo Rwacunika (commonly known as Keihura-nkuba) petitioned the EC
asking for the nullification of DP’s John Ssebana Kizito’s candidature over failure to
pay shs. 54million owed to the hotel near Mandela National Stadium, where DP had
held its national conference.
Rukungiri district Returning Officer Mr. Frank Ntaho revealed that 31 people were
unopposed in the district for various posts; adding on that among them, 24 people
were for NRM; six for FDC; and one Independent. Gilbert Bitwababo and Herbert
Musigyi of Buyanja and Nyakagyeme sub-counties respectively, wanted to contest for
3
ISO - Internal Security Organization is a security (spy) agency officed in the Directorate of Security,
Office of the President, together with an external one – ESO.
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the Youth District councillor seat but their nominations were cancelled because they
were above the permitted 30 years of age.
The EC has procured transparent ballot boxes to be used in the forthcoming elections.
These, it is hoped, will help to reduce election malpractices, notably ballot -stuffing
and votes cast before voting time starts (The New Vision, Monday January 30, 2006.
Also see Local Governments Act, 1997, Section 129 (8).
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