The Electoral Commission has called for peaceful youth elections at the parish level which is going on today.
Today, the EC is holding country wide elections for youth parish committees covering a total of 10,595 parishes. The elections are taking place from from 9am to 4pm.
The EC Spokesman , Julius Mucunguzi, told the media that only those youths who were successfully elected to the village level youth committees are participating in today’s parish level elections.
“This means that the youth committees at the village level within a parish are going to meet within the parish and elect among themselves the nine committee members that sit at the parish level.
Any youth who is not a member of the village youth committee has nothing to do with this election and they’re not expected to show up. Only those that are on the village youth committees are expected to turn up to form themselves into an electoral college at the parish and elect among themselves the nine members that form their committee,” Mucunguzi said in a recorded message to the media.
“This particular election is for lining up; voters will line up behind the candidate of their choice or the candidate’s picture or poster or symbol or behind the agent of the candidate,” Mucunguzi added while calling for peace and adherence to the EC set laws and regulations .
“As the Commission has always said, elections are not a war, elections are not a do or die affair. We should treat and conduct ourselves in a manner that is peaceful and gives the dignity of the election and the dignity of the people of Uganda that desired characteristic. We don’t want to see any involvement in any form of violence during these committee elections.
This a special appeal to the youth to desist from being drawn into violent acts or acts of confrontation among themselves because belonging to one political party or supporting one candidate doesn’t turn the other people or the other youth in another camp into enemies. It simply means that you’ve different choices but you should and are expected to remain civil and respectful of each other and united in purpose even in your diversity,” he stressed.
