Three presiding officers in Mbarara city under investigations

Mbarara, Uganda |  THE INDEPENDENT | Three presiding officers in Mbarara City are being investigated for alleged electoral malpractices during the presidential and parliamentary elections last week. The Mbarara City Returning Officer, Olivia Atuhurira, says she has received complaints from some candidates accusing the polling officials of being partisan. 

Atuhurira also says that they have replaced or dropped some of the presiding officers for mishandling the previous elections. She cites a presiding officer who used the declaration form signed by a presiding officer from another polling station.

She says that the presiding officer of the new taxi park (A-Z) polling station was dismissed for registering more voters compared to the registered voters at the polling station during the presidential and parliamentary elections. The results from this particular polling station were cancelled. 

Apollo Musinguzi, the Rwizi Regional Election Officer warned candidates against moving around polling stations during today’s polls to stir confusion and ferry voters.  

Ugandans are expected to elect LC V Chairpersons, City Mayors and directly elected councilors to the district and city councils today. This is first election in Mbarara since it was elevated to a city status. There are 195 polling stations and 111, 4511 registered voters in Mbarara city.

Six candidates are vying for the Mbarara Mayor’s seat. 

They are Robert Mugabe Kakyebezi, the National Resistance Movement-NRM party candidate, Stanley Katembeya Tugume from the Forum for Democratic Change-FDC, Norman Mugarura Vincent from the Alliance for National Transformation Party- ANT, Peter Mpaka, the National Unity Platform-NUP, Albert Atukunda and Apollo Kibira, both independents.

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