SEMBABULE – Voting in the National Resistance Movement (NRM) residual primary elections in Sembabule District has been delayed due to disputes over voter verification. As of this afternoon, the election for party district leadership had not begun, with candidates clashing with registrars over the authenticity of the voters’ register.
Tensions flared when Mawogola West MP Anifa Kawooya, also vying for the NRM district chairperson seat, confronted Party Elections Registrar Deborah Arayo, accusing her of manipulating the register to rig the poll. Kawooya alleged her opponent, retired Major General Phehansi Katirima, tampered with the register to include ineligible voters.
She cited Bulongo and Nabitanga sub-counties, which she claimed had delegates on the final register despite not electing their leadership structures. Lwemiyaga County MP Theodore Ssekikubo joined her, demanding the register be cleaned to remove allegedly ineligible voters. Kawooya also objected to the deployment of armed UPDF personnel at the Sembabule District playground voting ring.
“I’m afraid someone may be after my life. I will not participate until we are sure of our safety. Some want to shoot at me,” she told the returning officer.
Amid the heated exchanges, James Kinone, the NRM Elections Commissioner for Buganda, intervened and directed the two sub-counties to first hold leadership elections so their delegates could participate. Kinone urged calm, assuring the commission’s commitment to a fair process.
Retired Major General Katirima dismissed the allegations, saying his opponents feared defeat. “They should accept that they failed to mobilize support,” he told officials.
The NRM has twice before failed to elect Sembabule District leadership, with both attempts marred by candidate clashes.
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