UCU to hold virtual guild elections

Uganda Christian University (UCU) electoral commission on Saturday unveiled plans to have virtual elections where students will have the opportunity to vote for their new guild government for the year 2020-21 using their smartphones and computers.

John Boss Bruce, the UCU main campus guild electoral commission chairperson said that the e-voting code-named e-Chagua will help the university to change its guild leadership even when the university is not fully functioning as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic which led to the closure of all education institutions over seven months ago.

Bruce said that they resolved to have this kind of election process because the current guild government's term of office is soon expiring in November when the entire students' body is at home, making it impossible for them to organise the normal elections.

Bruce together with his entire electoral commission team from both the main and Kampala campuses together with the Director of Student Affairs (DOSA), Bridget Mugume Mugasira held a media briefing at the UCU main Campus on Saturday. 

He said that today, his team will start receiving candidates' application forms of both members of parliament and those vying for the guild presidency.

"The vetting for MPs will then commence and later, a joint selection board will also sit to vet the candidates for guild president. We shall hold the voting for the main campus on November 16," he said.

He added that after two days, the UCU Kampala campus will as well hold their voting exercise and later the sister campuses.

Mugasira said that this system has been in place since 2015 but it had never gotten a chance to be fully used.

She said that they had already tested it in 2018 when the theology students used it as they voted for their leaders.

"We are rolling it out because students are not on campus. And the way to go now is online, so working online is the new norm for every progressing organisation," she said.

Mugasira said that students will be helped to campaign online and for the candidates vying for guild president, they will also hold a presidential debate.

She added that unlike the other ordinary voting process for which they used to spend over sh35m, for e-Chagua, they have budgeted to use less than sh19m.

Edwin Byarugaba, the UCU web and e-learning administrator said that students must be sure that with e-Chagua, their votes will be closely monitored by everyone who will be online that day and every student has one chance to cast a vote.

Jemimah Elizabeth, the electoral commission chairperson for the Kampala Campus urged the entire students' body to participate in the e-Chagua from wherever they are.

"Let all of you pick interest not only in the voting exercise but also in standing for the available posts including guild president and members of parliament for different faculties," she said.