Uganda’s 2021 general elections hang in the balance after President Yoweri Museveni said it would be suicidal for Ugandans to go to the polls when the country is still battling the Covid-19 pandemic that is ravaging countries across the world.
In
a rare exclusive local TV interview in recent times, set to be aired
on Monday evening -Museveni said it would be unwise for people to
gather in an election season that could lead to the spread of the
deadly coronavirus. “ It will be madness to say you go and
people gather . I don’t think it will be wise”, Museveni said
when asked about the possibility of holding the elections in the
middle of the Covid-19 pandemic .
Uganda
was set to hold general elections in early 2021 but with the
president’s remarks it seems most unlikely that Ugandans will
choose their leaders for the next five years as scheduled .
The
Electoral Commission , the body charged with managing elections in
Uganda was tight lipped about the new development although sources
intimated that officials led by the Electoral Commission Chairman
Justice Simon Byakagaba were consulting widely about the next course
of action.
Already
, section of Uganda’s representatives to the East African
Legislative Assembly (EALA) have called for the postponement of the
general elections arguing that the Electoral Commission didn’t
have sufficient time left to hold the elections as earlier planned .
In
the TV interview to be aired on Monday at 9pm local time, President
Museveni also hit out at opposition politicians who accused him of
taking advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic to gain political capital
calling them “Idiots”. “Who could wish for this so that I
speak and become popular ?. That’s rubbish , idiots”, Museveni
added.
The legal and financial cost of postponing a general election will be quite significant and it cant be helped by the fact that a considerable amount of national resources have been invested in the emergency responses against the Covid-19 crisis, areas hit by floods due to the on going heavy rains and the locust’s invasion. “ The resource envelop is simply oversubscribed right now to undertake such an expensive enterprise like the general elections. If we go ahead with the elections, it will not be fair to all the players. The logical thing to do would be to push the elections forward for at least a year,” a political commentator who preferred not to be named stated.
Uganda has already lost two months according to the general elections road map that was released by the Electoral Commission.
But other independent elections observers include Mr. Crispin Kaheru, who has called upon the government to follow the South Korea example where they have successfully held their legislative elections while observing strict health measures including social distancing and washing hands to avoid contracting the deadly virus in an elections season. “ Therefore, what Uganda needs is probably not postponing the election, but rather integrating health and safety measures in its electoral framework, Kaheru said.
At least fifty-three (53)
countries and territories across the globe have decided to postpone
national and subnational elections due to COVID-19, out of
which at least eighteen (18) countries and territories have
decided to postpone national elections and referendums;
