NRM delegates approve lining up for voting

Jan 25, 2020

Museveni who doubles as national chairman of the party reasoned that the proposal was aimed at abetting transparency and cutting the cost of internal elections.

NRM          CONSTITUTION        VOTING

The motion to amend the constitution was moved by former Kabula MP James Kakooza, who was described as an NRM promoter and seconded by Nasike, a youth representative from Sironko.

There was a heated debate when the chairman, President Yoweri Museveni, allowed people to debate the motion. There were as many people in support as well as those opposed to the motion who spoke about the motion.

When put to vote, the AYES (in support) were many and the NAYES (against) the motion were many. This forced the President to put the vote again and after the second vote, he declared the motion passed.

The National Resistance Movement (NRM) decision making organs had spent months consulting on the proposal to amend there constitution in a bid to tighten electoral transparency and cut costs that tag along with internal elections.

Since Thursday, the party's Central Executive Committee (CEC) and the National Executive Council (NEC) had been engulfed in back-to-back meetings in which they agreed to alter Art39(10)e of there constitution in favour of lining up behind preferred candidates.

The organs had unanimously agreed that scrapping the secret ballot.

During the NEC meeting at State House in Entebbe, President Yoweri Museveni told members that CEC had agreed to the proposal albeit descending voices.

Museveni who doubles as national chairman of the party reasoned that the proposal was aimed at abetting transparency and cutting the cost of internal elections.

"People treat politics as a career so the process becomes a matter of life and death. Originally, we had electoral colleges but delegates were being bribed, we than went for a mini general election but sustaining it logistically is too much for a political party yet it doesn't solve the issue of transparency," he said.

He added that although those opposed to the amendment had argued that lining up during elections would breed domestic violence and political rivalry in communities, "the medicine for cheating has side effects but when you weigh this, even in the secret ballot people openly take sides so the question is what the majority of the members prefer."

The motion to amend the NRM constitution was subsequently moved by the NRM deputy secretary-general, Richard Todwong and seconded by former Bukoto West MP, Mulindwa Birimumaso.

"Amendment provides for more transparent and democratic elections in the NRM which will also put confidence in the system of electing leaders. An election registrar gets Sh5,000 as allowance but they can easily be bribed off so lining up will eliminate influence peddling, reduce the cost of elections and curtail the raise of independents that are born out of rigging elections," said Mulindwa.

However, Ngora district woman MP, Jacquiline Amongin had argued that whereas lining up is fronted as an effective system, it will curtail gender participation, especially on the women that might fear the violence and intimidation that could be involved in the process, however, her attempt to block the amendment was foiled.

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