The opposition National Unity Platform (NUP) has asked the Electoral Commission of Uganda to publish official declaration forms from the recently concluded general election, saying the continued delay raises serious questions about the transparency of the electoral process.
Speaking to the media on Thursday, NUP Secretary General David Lewis Rubongoya said that up to now the Electoral Commission had not uploaded the declaration of results (DR) forms to its online system for public access.
Rubongoya argued that the delay could indicate irregularities in the vote tallying process.
“We have been waiting for the Electoral Commission to publish the declaration forms so that the public can verify the results, but until today they have not done so,” he said.
According to Rubongoya, NUP independently collected declaration forms from polling stations across the country through its agents during the election period. He said the party intends to compare its copies with those from the Electoral Commission once they are made public.
He claimed the opposition suspects that the commission could be reluctant to release the documents because of alleged manipulation of results.
“The reason they fear to release them is because they know the election was rigged,” Rubongoya alleged.
Rubongoya also raised concerns about what the party describes as political prisoners still being held despite a ruling by the Supreme Court of Uganda that civilians should not be tried in military courts.
He revealed that he recently spoke with detained opposition legislator Muhammad Muwanga Kivumbi, who he said remains strong despite being under incarceration.
Rubongoya said NUP is preparing legal action against the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (Uganda), accusing it of contempt of court and seeking a judicial review over the continued detention of some suspects.
According to him, many detainees remain in prison despite the Supreme Court ruling that their cases should be transferred from military tribunals to civilian courts.
“The problem is that many of these political prisoners do not know which court they should report to. Civilian courts say they have no charges against them, yet the suspects remain in detention,” Rubongoya said.
The NUP secretary general also revealed that the party had received reports of people allegedly killed or abducted during the election period.
He said families have been reporting cases to the party’s headquarters, prompting the NUP human rights department to begin documenting the claims.
“Many families have been coming to our offices reporting that their relatives were either shot dead or abducted during the election period,” Rubongoya said.
He added that the party is compiling the information and will continue engaging affected families as part of its documentation of alleged human rights violations.
Meanwhile, David Lewis Rubongoya said the party remains on course with its planned protest vote campaign, noting that the “Kabange” phase of the strategy is already underway. He said the initiative involves the party leadership, including Robert Kyagulanyi Ssentamu, the president of the National Unity Platform.
Rubongoya added that Kyagulanyi is currently operating largely on the international stage, where the party has been engaging foreign institutions and advocacy platforms over Uganda’s political and human rights situation. He cited a legal move led by the party’s international lawyer, Robert Amsterdam, who has filed a petition on behalf of the National Unity Platform seeking action from the Commonwealth of Nations over concerns about governance and human rights in Uganda.
NUP leaders say the party will continue pursuing legal and political avenues to demand accountability over the conduct of elections and the treatment of opposition supporters.
The Electoral Commission had not yet issued a response to the allegations by press time.
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