The Electoral Commission (EC) has called for amendments to the Constitution and electoral laws to enable prisoners to vote, saying the absence of a legal framework has prevented the implementation of a court ruling affirming inmates’ voting rights.
Speaking during a media briefing ahead of Tuesday’s Local Council I (LCI) elections, Electoral Commission Chairperson Justice Simon Byabakama said the Commission cannot operationalise the court decision until Parliament enacts the necessary legal reforms.
Byabakama explained that although the court ruled that prisoners have the right to vote, it did not prescribe how elections should be conducted within prison facilities. He added that electoral laws must also be harmonised with legislation governing prisons before the ruling can be implemented.
“The court pronounced itself on the right of prisoners to vote, but it did not prescribe the mechanism for implementing that decision. We therefore need the necessary legal reforms to enable the Commission to organise prisoner voting in accordance with the law,” Byabakama said.
The EC chairperson made the remarks while confirming that preparations for the election of Local Council I chairpersons and village executive committees in 71,214 villages across the country have been completed.
He said election materials have been dispatched nationwide, while polling officials and voters’ registers are in place to facilitate a smooth electoral process.
Byabakama clarified that there will be no special voting arrangements for elderly persons, persons with disabilities or pregnant women during the village elections because the law requires all eligible voters to line up behind their preferred candidates.
He also addressed concerns over voter presence at polling stations, explaining that unlike presidential and parliamentary elections, where voters leave immediately after casting secret ballots, village elections are conducted by voters lining up behind candidates in public.
“The continued presence of voters at the polling venue is an integral part of the voting process under the law,” he said.
The EC chairperson further attributed some of the violence witnessed during the recent Women Councils elections to candidates who allegedly mobilised supporters to disrupt the exercise.
He warned that any attempts to intimidate voters, cause violence or interfere with Tuesday’s polls would not be tolerated.
Under the election programme, verification of voters on the register will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., followed by voting through lining up behind candidates beginning at 11:00 a.m. in all 71,214 villages across Uganda.
