EC starts the verification of national voters' register

The Electoral Commission has revealed that the process of verifying the national voters' register has started in various parts of the country as the country heads towards the general election come 2021.

The revelation was made on Friday when the commission met different stakeholders from different regions on how the verification exercise will be conducted.

The commission met with different stakeholders which included security agencies, politicians among others.

The Deputy Chairperson Electoral Commission, Hajjat Aisha Lubega said the commission is going to work hand in hand with the local leaders and village councils during the initial stages of the exercise.

She noted that the local leaders will be very helpful in the identification of bonafide residents in the different villages.

“To address such related complaints, the commission devised strategy for the verification of the voters on the register. This strategy has been piloted in some of the by-elections and has proved to be very effective,"she said.

She said that the strategy gives an opportunity for the public to scrutinise the voters on the register and identify the legible voters for appropriate action.

"It is very important that we we take advantage of this time to clean up the register before the general election,"she added.

Lubega refuted media reports that the commission was planning to increase the nomination fee for presidential candidates upto Shs 100 million.

She said the commission does not have the mandate to determine the amount to be paid by candidates vying for any position.

The programme for the village verification of the national register and the comparison of the register for special interests group will start on 16th October 2019.