FDC calls for a leveled ground ahead of elections

ELECTION WATCH | FDC 

The Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party has embarked on a village campaign model to canvass for votes ahead of the 2021 general elections.

The model code named "Bonfire" targets reaching voters in small groups and household level in all villages countrywide.

To effect this, the party has instituted a national campaign team with clusters in the party's 21 sub-regions in the four regions of the country.

The teams will be working with the district chairperson and closely with other leaders right from the village level.

The move by the FDC comes after the Electoral Commission (EC) banned public gatherings during campaigns to avoid the spread of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.

According to the data from the health ministry by Monday (October 19, 2020), Uganda's cumulative confirmed cases stand at 10,691 with 6,992 recoveries and 97 deaths.

Addressing journalists at party's weekly press briefing at the party headquarters in Najjanankumbi, a Kampala suburb Monday, the party national chairman Ambassador, Wasswa Birigwa, said the strategy is aimed at reaching all people without flouting the health ministry Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).   

"We have set up our campaign team right from the top to the bottom. The team is responsible for canvassing votes and protecting votes for the party's presidential flag bearer and all other party flag bearers," he said.

Birigwa said the team was carefully chosen with competent people.

The team is headed by the Birigwa as the director general campaigns.

Other members of the team include: Ibrahim Ssemujju Nganda (director publicity), Jack Sabiti (director finance and logistics), Betty Aol Ocan (director special interest groups), Erias Lukwago (directorate legal services), Reagan Okumu (Commander Northern region), Nandala Mafabi (Commander Eastern block), William Nzoghu (Commander Western block) and  Joyce Ssebugwawo (Commander Buganda block), among others.   

"Because rallies are not allowed, we opted for this strategy to effectively reach voters," he added.

Birigwa said this will also help voters interface with those who need their votes and ask them questions.

He called on government to provide a leveled ground for all candidates to meet the voters without being interfered.

"We want the law to apply to everyone. On many occasions the law has always been implemented indiscriminately harassing only the opposition. You have seen police disrupting our events yet NRM is doing the same. We need to respect one another," he added. 

The party president who is also the party presidential flag bearer, Patrick Amuriat Oboi, said the party has already instituted another team of 30 people code named "Power 10", in every village to embark on door to door campaigns in their respective villages.

"This means with 76,000 villages in the country; we are 2.5million strong to canvass for votes at household level. This team will also help to encourage our supporters who had lost hope in the previous elections on the account of what happened," he said.

"We only call on government to play a good game. If they play it badly, we shall be forced to retaliate," he noted.

He said unlike in the previous elections, "this time we shall be moving with our tents and where night falls, we camp with villagers".

"We want to bond with Ugandans," he added.

Amuriat revealed that 316 candidates were nominated for MP seats, in different districts and constituencies.