Fellow Ugandans, especially the Bazzukulu, greetings.
It is encouraging that we are receiving rains after a long, hot season. However, I urge everyone to stop damaging our environment, no matter where you are.
In this piece, I wish to inform you that an electoral and criminal investigation has been initiated in the Kawempe North by-election.
Several serious allegations have surfaced, including ballot stuffing, altering results, destroying ballot boxes in Kazo-Angola and the Mbogo Mosque zone, and other forms of malfeasance. This has occurred because certain individuals do not want these votes to be counted. Other issues such as campaigning at polling stations, intimidation, and violence have also been raised.
While the heavy deployment of security forces helped prevent mass violence, it could not prevent these micro-crimes, which should have been managed by the election officials on the ground.
Some individuals truly miscalculate. To think that one can commit such crimes, against the law and the people, under the current NRM leadership, is a dangerous form of shallowness. We will ensure that everyone involved in such wrongdoing is held accountable.
Those who intimidate NRM supporters must cease their actions and apologize. To those using the language, “yemwe abatusibyeko NRM,” it must stop. Respect the choices of the Ugandan people.
Ballot-stuffing has been a persistent problem since 1961. This is one of the factors that have led to instability in Uganda. Some leaders, knowing they can cheat and retain power regardless of public support, neglect to focus on solving the people’s problems. This practice must end.
That is why we are adamant about the use of biometric verification for voters. Anyone who is not bio-metrically verified will not be allowed to vote. I trust that all Ugandans who desire peace will support this initiative. It must be one person, one vote. Recently, a person was arrested with 18 ballot papers, an alarming violation of electoral integrity.
The NRM must not engage in cheating by claiming that the opposition is doing so. We must work together to fight the disenfranchisement of the Ugandan people. This was one of the core reasons the NRM fought in the bush.
I have heard concerns about the harsh methods used by some security elements, especially against journalists. We are reviewing these actions. However, we must first ask: why were the UPDF and JATT deployed for crowd control?
Uganda remains a beacon of peace in the region, largely due to the work of the UPDF. They have enough responsibilities, including combating the ADF, dealing with cattle rustlers in Karamoja, addressing the threat of Kony in the Central African Republic, and fighting al-Shabaab in Somalia. In those regions, they have to take extreme measures to protect Ugandans. This is why Ugandans can dance freely at nightclubs without fear. However, when the military is diverted to crowd control, it is often because of the indiscipline of certain opposition groups.
Who organized the Kabaka riots in September 2009? Who instigated the 2020 riots, during which people were killed, NRM women were assaulted, and police officers were attacked? Where was the Army in those situations?
I deployed the commandos on November 20th to crush the insurrection. Who organized the panga groups in Masaka? Who destroyed ballot boxes from 50 out of 197 polling stations in Kawempe North? These actions have invited the NRM to respond, and we shall do so decisively.
The mistakes made by soldiers may arise from being redirected to crowd control duties, an assignment outside their usual role of safeguarding national security. These are the criminal mistakes of the opposition.
That being said, there are organizational mistakes within the NRM too, particularly in how we engage with the public and address issues collectively. Investigations will determine who was responsible for destroying the ballot boxes in Kazo-Angola and Mbogo Centre, and why it happened. Could it be because of the significant support the NRM has in the area, due to our anti-poverty programs? The CEC is addressing these issues, and we had a meeting last Friday to discuss these matters.
Signed,
Yoweri K. Museveni
President of the Republic of Uganda
