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KAMPALA - The 2021 general elections in Uganda were concluded on February 3. 

This electoral exercise left many landlords and tenants upset because they had to deal with the burden of removing campaign posters from their buildings. 

For the last four months, many buildings in Kampala’s suburbs and other urban areas across the country were covered with campaign posters of political candidates, a move some landlords tried to protest against to no avail. 

Richard Musoke, a landlord whose new building is located at Kabuusu, Rubaga division is one of the disgruntled property owners. 

“In November last year, I woke up one morning to find campaign posters of different presidential candidates on my perimeter wall and the main gate. I was furious because I had just painted it,” Musoke says.

Musoke wanted to remove the posters but was told he could be jailed for one year or pay a fine not exceeding sh600,000 if he did so. 

“I decided to leave the posters until the campaigns ended,” he says. His neighbour, Henry Ntege, who owns rental houses (mizigos) was shocked when his tenants pinned posters of their favorite candidates in front of their houses and window glasses. 

“I told them to remove all the posters, but at the end of the exercise, the houses look untidy. I have to repaint them, and this means that I have to increase the rental fees,” he explains.

How to remove posters         

Muhammed Nsereko, a construction expert says improper plugging off of campaign posters damages the surface walls. 

Most of the posters are fixed on the buildings using either gum or cassava flour. 

Richard Musoke, a landlord whose new building is located at Kabuusu, Rubaga division is one of the disgruntled property owners. Photos by Brian Mayanja

“Therefore, it’s advisable to use paraffin for a neat removal of poster off your wall. For cassava flour, you can use water. It is even better to use scrapers and repaint the building after the exercise,” he says. 

There are two types of scrapers; the straight and the manual paint scrapers. Straight scrapers are good at removing softened paint or soaked wallpapers, while manual scrapers remove paint and rust. 

David Kireli, an engineer, further says to avoid such challenges, land lords should not allow campaign posters on their walls as a matter of principle because no candidate is ready to meet the costs of removing them after the elections. 

KCCA speaks out  

Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) says it is also having to deal with the challenge of removing campaign posters from walls and buildings in the city. 

Many of its properties like schools and health centres, have these posters all over them. 

KCCA’s health team is already moving in the city suburbs, removing campaign posters from public buildings and street walls.

“After removing the posters, we shall have to repaint the walls,” Daniel Nuwabine, KCCA’s spokesperson says. 

Nuwabine also explains that removing the posters along the streets and main roads is aimed at preventing floods when it rains. 

“Such materials block drainage systems, stopping water from moving easily, which causes floods.”

Legal action

Can building owners sue the culprits for putting posters on their properties? George Musisi, a city lawyer says the affected people can register a trespass case before the courts of law. 

The Parliamentary Elections Act, which states that a person who maliciously defaces, removes or tears any election poster of any nominated candidate commits an offence, does not apply to private properties. 

When campaigns started in November last year, KCCA reminded candidates about KCCA’s maintenance of the Law and Order Ordinance 2006, which prohibits candidates from displaying posters on the exterior surface of any building on any part of their premises without a license or permission. 

However, many of them ignored the ordinance and put posters everywhere they found. 

To mitigate this, Kireli says there is need to harmonise the law and make it clear.  “KCCA and the Police must be empowered to enforce it,” he notes.