ULS warns of court petitions over scientific elections

The president of Uganda Law Society(USL), Simon Peter Kinobe, has predicted a possible increase in election petitions in case the general elections are conducted scientifically.

His comments come at a time when the country is pondering whether to hold scientific elections in 2021.

A proposal to have scientific campaigns has been met with resistance from different stakeholders and opposition leaders saying there is likely to be rigging.

Among the proposals is the use of radios, televisions,social media to carry out campaigns and use of zoom among others.

Kinobe noted that this kind of arrangement will encourage unfair competition because some candidates will be left out given the nature of the initiative.

"We need to think of the legal ramifications of holding this scientific election so that it doesn't seem as if it is favouring one candidate over the other,"he said.

He said this kind of arrangement is more likely to increase in the number of court petitions.

"I see a lot of elections being challenged for being discriminatory and and for excluding other individuals,"he said.

Kinobe called upon the Electoral Commission to be guided by the Constitution while deciding how the elections will be conducted come 2021.

"The challenge is how do we make it effective and I think the Electoral Commission needs to work out the clear procedures based on the laws of this country,"he said.

He said Ugandans should be given an opportunity to see their leaders and to have access to them so that they are able to make informed decisions.

Today, the Electoral Commission is expected to launch a revised electoral roadmap.