EC to spend over Shs7bn on Voters Register verification

As Uganda prepares for the general elections in 2021, THE Electoral Commission (EC) has revealed that over Shs 7.1bn will be spent in the exercise of verifying the National Voters Register.

Addressing journalists on Thursday at the commission headquarters in Kampala , EC chairman Justice Simon Byabakama said that the exercise already commenced on Wednesday with the briefing of the sub-county supervisors.

“Our teams have started briefing parish supervisors and Local Council I chairpersons who will carry out the updating exercise in order to remove the dead people from the register and enter the new ones, this entire exercise will cost us over Shs7.1bn,” said Byabakama.

Following the numerous errors in voters register in all previous general elections, last week EC launched a new strategy of involving local councils leadership committees who will help in identifying the true members of the community since they are the one who interact with those people and they know them very well.

Byamukama backed this new strategy and said “It has been piloted in some of the by-elections and it has proved very effective. It will also allow the public to scrutinise the voters on the register and identify the ineligible voters for appropriate action, hence the decision to use it during the update of the New Voters’ Register that will be used in the 2021 general elections.”

According to him, the Commission will also for the first time compile the register for persons with disability separately, however, the information to be used will be provided by the village councils to end the mistrusts and complaints that have always been raised by people especially the opposition that some people participate in the persons with disability elections yet they are not.

“In the villages who still have wrangles in leadership we shall go with the old executives because they have at least stayed for some good times and they know much compared to the new executive,” said Byamukama.